Pasta is probably one of the most comforting dishes at all times and whenever I decide on cooking and having pasta kids get very excited. This pasta dish comes with a little twist as it contains no real pasta making it a super super healthy ‘pasta’, guilt free since it’s very low in carbs and it is gluten free.
To spiralize the vegetables (potatoes, sweet potatoes, celery, carrots, beetroots, butternut squash and so on) I’m using a tool which makes my life a lot easier and that is a spiralizer obviously.
And this is what is coming out of few courgettes that have spiralised, :-)) they look cool and really pretty don’t they?
I love this type of food as you can eat as much as you can fit in without feeling guilty.
Most of the time kids come from school I do asked them what they would like to eat that for dinner. Guess what would the answer be 80% of the time?!… 😊 yes, it is! It’s pasta, of course, your guess is perfectly spot on.
In the light of this, I had to come up with a healthier alternative and less carbs option (as any super mum would) for the kids to take in as many veggies as possible but also for us the adults we need to cook dishes that keep us in shape and can be gobbled up however many times we fancy without having to worry too much. 😉😉 Above all these reasons really I am more concerned with the variety. 👍 😉
I love cooking different, different dishes so I do not get bored with eating pretty much the same types of food all the time. I am pretty sure most people do feel this way.
Just as you imagined this is super simple to make, it looks and it is a super healthy treat!
You fancy it a vegetarian version, just take the meat out and it is equally beautiful.
Spiralized zucchini pasta
Ingredients
- 4-5 courgettes (organic)
- 500 g mince beef 5% fat -10% max
- 1 can red kidney beans (organic)
- 250 g tenderstem broccoli (organic)
- 1 can tomato chopped (organic)
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- 1 carrot (organic)
- 1 pinch italian herbs mixed
- 2 cloves garlic (organic)
- 1 small onion chopped
- 1 small red pepper (organic)
- 1 stick celery (organic)
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp himalayan salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper freshly ground
Instructions
- Wash and chop the ends of the courgettes, spiralize them and set aside.
- In a deeper frying pan add the meat, salt, garlic finely chopped, the chopped onion and carrot, celery, paprika and the Italian mixed herbs. Cook for a good 10 min covered and toss occasionally then add the pepper and let it cook for a further 3 min.
- Add the beans, the broccoli and the chopped tomatoes, cayenne pepper if you fancy and cook for a further 5 min. I like my broccoli really crunchy and barely cooked but if you wish your broccoli soft add it earlier on to cook or simply cook for longer. Switch off the heat and set aside.
- Let's cook the 'pasta' now by placing a large pan on medium fire, you can add a bit of oil if you wish, I don't normally do that when using meat since this has its own fat but I do use olive or coconut oil whenever I make the vegetarian option. Cook for literally 3 minutes tossing it a couple of times. Again I like my courgettes crunchy and not very cooked but if you like them soft then obviously you need to cook them for longer.
Notes
Instead of courgette/zucchini you can use celeriac or squash, or a mix of courgette carrots and beetroot. It's delicious. If you haven't got a spiralizer you can use a peeler and make and use those shavings.