Tag Archives: brown rice pasta

Creamy Green Spaghetti

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PastaEver get a little ambitious shopping in the vegetable aisle and find yourself with produce that has to be used up ASAP? Well, I found some zucchinis and asparagus in my fridge today that needed to be eaten, but didn’t want to go with the old sautée stand-by. Then, I remembered a pasta recipe in Tyler Florence’s new book, Inside the Test Kitchen (which I highly recommend) that was squash-centric and used it as a basis for the dish below.

It turned out delicious and the execution was simple! The blended vegetables made a creamy, flavorful sauce that tasted decadent without any added dairy. The asparagus and pine nuts added great texture and flavor as did the basil and Parmesan. I used brown rice spaghetti to make it healthier, but feel free to use your favorite brand.

Zucchini Spaghetti
Serves 2-4

4 zucchinis, cut into 1/4″ slices
1 large onion, cut into 1″ pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed, steamed and cut into 1″ pieces
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
Fresh basil
Parmesan
salt and pepper
olive oil
1lb. package spaghetti

  1. Heat olive oil in large sautée pan over medium-high heat, add all vegetables except for asparagus. Season with salt and pepper
  2. Cook until vegetables are soft, but not falling apart
  3. Add sautéed vegetables to blender and process until it becomes a smooth sauce
  4. Transfer sauce into a saucepan, re-season with salt and pepper if needed and keep warm over low heat
  5. Cook spaghetti al dente, drain, return to pot over medium heat, add sauce and asparagus, heat through
  6. Serve garnished with basil, Parmesan and pine nuts