Jun 9, 2012

Zucchini Noodles & Raw Marinara Sauce

Does anyone else ever feel like they are drowning in zucchini in the summer? I know I’m preaching to the choir when I say that I cannot give away my abundance of zucchini fast enough this time of year!

I just shared a presentation on local food as part of the Vintage Remedies 2012 Virtual Conference and the people who attended had some great ideas for creative ways to use up all that zucchini and summer squash. I also shared one of my favorite recipes - which is spiralized zucchini noodles served with either regular pasta sauce, or this awesome raw marinara.

Eating raw food is so cleansing for your body. Plus, you don’t cook out any nutrients, nor do you warm up the kitchen in the blazing heat of the summer!

This recipe was originally found in Dr. Josh Axe’s Real Food Diet Cookbook, and the pictures I’ve used here were taken by the lovely Allison Hendrickson.

For starters, you’re going to need a spiralizer. Something just like this will do the trick. Your spiralizer’s instruction booklet should explain how to make zucchini noodles, or it may just be really obvious that you stick it on, lock it in place, then crank the handle. But I realize some models might come with a few too many bells and whistles.

When you’re done, chop up some red bell peppers and shallots and toss them with the noodles, along with a tablespoon or so of lemon juice. Other goodies that really add a punch of flavor are minced garlic, minced ginger, minced jalapeno pepper, or fresh tarragon. Start with a little and taste test first.

Now it’s time to make the sauce. Like I said before, if you want to serve this with plain pasta sauce from the jar, it’s A-ok. I use Trader Joe’s organic marinara sauce quite often. But this raw marinara really takes the cake.

Raw Marinara Sauce

Ingredients:

1 ripe tomato

1/2 c. sun-dried tomatoes, soaked

1/2 red bell pepper

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. fresh minced basil

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 clove garlic

sea salt

black pepper

dash cayenne pepper

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a food processor or powerful blender (like a Vitamix) and process until it desired consistency is reached. Serve over spiralized zucchini noodles.

Enjoy! Feel free to enlighten me on what else I can use the spiralizer for. I’m always looking for new ideas!

This post is linked to Real Food Wednesday, Fight Back Friday, Fresh Foods Wednesday