🥒 Zoodle Me This

From Appetiser to Dessert – A Courgette-Packed Menu You Didn’t Know You Needed

Friends, Romans, courgette growers… lend me your forks. Because we’re about to take a culinary stroll through a meal entirely dedicated to the most humble overachiever of the summer garden: the zucchini. Or courgette. Or green thing that multiplies like a Marvel sequel. Whatever you call it, today it’s the star of the show.

Ready for an all-zoodle menu that spirals from fresh and fun to utterly surprising? Let’s dig in…

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🥒How to make zucchini noodles

If you’ve never spiralised a courgette, prepare to feel powerful. These veggie noodles are the gateway to gluten-free pasta joy. This isn’t a recipe so much as a technique—once you’ve got your zoodles prepped, the possibilities are endless. Snack on them raw with a little olive oil and flaky salt, or use them as a base for the rest of this green-tinted menu.

Great info from Love and Lemons.

🥗 Starter: Warm Caprese Zoodles

All the vibes of a caprese salad, but warmed up and wrapped around silky zucchini strands. Think juicy cherry tomatoes, melting mozzarella, basil confetti, and a good drizzle of balsamic glaze. It’s like your favourite Italian starter got a cozy veggie sweater.

Ingredients

• 30ml olive oil

• 280g cherry tomatoes, halved

• 5 medium zucchini, spiralized into noodles

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• 225g mini mozzarella balls, halved

• 6g fresh basil, cut into thin strips

• 30ml balsamic glaze

Directions

1. Cook the zoodles: Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add cherry tomatoes and quickly stir until tomatoes just begin to soften, 1-2 minutes. Add zucchini noodles, salt, and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until zoodles are tender yet firm to the bite, 2-3 minutes.

2. Add finishing ingredients: Remove from heat and stir in mozzarella and basil. Toss to coat evenly. Divide zoodles between 4 bowls and drizzle with balsamic glaze. Serve immediately.

Tips

• Don't overcook the zoodles - they should retain some texture

• Pat zucchini noodles dry with paper towels if they seem watery

• For best results, use fresh mozzarella balls (bocconcini or ciliegine)

• Serve immediately to prevent the dish from becoming watery

From all recipes.

🍜 Main Dish Option 1: Pad Thai Zoodles

Craving takeout but not the post-noodle slump? This zingy, peanutty, lime-kissed version of Pad Thai skips the rice noodles and embraces the spiral. Packed with crunch and full of umami, it’s quick, satisfying, and doesn’t make you want to nap immediately after.

Ingredients

For the Zucchini Noodle Pad Thai:

• 2 medium zucchini

• 2 tablespoons olive oil (30ml), divided

• 1/2 pound peeled and de-veined shrimp (225g) or whatever protein you prefer

• 3 cloves garlic, minced or crushed

• 1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced thin

• 3 green onions, sliced

• 1 large egg

• 2 cups bean sprouts (480ml), about

• 1/3 cup roasted peanuts (80ml)

• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro (optional)

• Few lime wedges for serving (optional)

For the Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar or distilled white vinegar (30ml)

• 2 tablespoons GF fish sauce (30ml), or to taste

• 3 tablespoons GF ketchup (45ml)

• 1 teaspoon packed brown sugar (5ml)

• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper or 1 small red chili, sliced

• 1 teaspoon chili garlic sauce, or to taste

Directions

1. Make the sauce: In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients (vinegar, fish sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, cayenne pepper, chili garlic sauce), then set aside.

2. Cut the zucchini into noodles or long pasta by using a vegetable spiralizer tool or tools mentioned in our post write up.

3. Heat a large pan on medium high heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil (reserve the other half for later). Then add zucchini noodles and cook for 2-3 minutes or until the zucchini noodles are tender. Don't overcook the noodles. The zucchini noodles should be slightly crunchy with a tender bite.

4. Let the noodles rest for about 3 minutes to allow as much moisture as possible to release. Remove the noodles from the pan and drain the excess water.

5. Carefully wipe the same pan to remove the excess water, and then re-heat the pan on medium high heat. Add the remaining olive oil and garlic. Cook the garlic until soft and translucent, about 30 seconds. Add the shrimp and cook until shrimp is tender and cooked through, about 3 minutes.

6. Add the bell peppers and green onions. Cook for about 1-2 minutes or until tender. Add the egg and stir in with the vegetable until the egg is cooked.

7. Add the zucchini noodles back into the same pan, then add the sauce. Cook for about 1 more minute or until the zucchini noodles are heated through. Then stir in the bean sprouts.

8. Serve the warm zucchini pad thai noodles with roasted peanuts, cilantro, and lime wedges.

From Todd+Diane

🧄 Main Dish Option 2: Garlic Parmesan Zoodles

Simple. Comforting. Cheese-covered. This is the weeknight hero of the bunch, and a guaranteed win for anyone who thinks “green things” are suspect. Garlicky, buttery, with just enough parmesan to make you forget you’re eating a vegetable. Zoodle magic at its finest.

Ingredients

• 3 medium zucchini

• 1 tablespoon butter

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 heaping teaspoon minced garlic

• Freshly ground black pepper (to taste)

• Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes (or to taste)

• 1/4 teaspoon fine ground sea salt (or to taste)

• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese (or a vegetarian, plant-based hard cheese, plus additional if desired)

Directions

1. Slice off and discard the ends of the zucchini. Spiralize the zucchini using a spaghetti-sized blade on your spiralizer. Run a sharp knife through the pile of zoodles several times to cut them to a more manageable size.

2. Melt the butter with the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes. Lower heat, if necessary, to prevent the garlic from burning.

3. Increase the heat to medium-high and add the zucchini noodles, black pepper, and crushed red pepper, to taste. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes or just until the zoodles are al dente. They should be tender when pierced with a fork but still have some bite to them.

4. Season with salt and stir in the Parmesan. Remove the skillet from the heat and serve immediately. Sprinkle with a little additional Parmesan for garnish, if desired.

From Wholesome made easy.

🍝 Traditionalist’s Pick: Pasta with Zucchini

Maybe you’re not quite ready to ditch real pasta (we get it—same). This dish gives you the best of both worlds: your fave gluten-free pasta with soft, sautéed zucchini and a kiss of lemon or chilli or cream (depending on your mood). It’s flexible, forgiving, and very much in season.

Pasta with Zucchini

🍭 Dessert: Sweet Cinnamon Zoodles

Hold up—zucchini for dessert? YES. Think sweet noodle kugel meets cinnamon toast. These gently cooked zoodles are spiced, sweetened, and served warm with a dollop of yogurt or scoop of ice cream. It’s oddly delightful and might just be your new weird crush.

🤖 Bonus Round: AI-Generated Zoodle Dessert from Claude

Now, here’s where things get really interesting. Our AI friend Claude whipped up a totally unique dessert using sweet zoodles that we haven’t tried yet—but it sounds intriguing in a “what could possibly go wrong?” kind of way. We’d love for you to be our official taste-testers. Try it out, leave a comment, tell us what you think! Brave kitchen explorers, we salute you.

Ingredients

Main Ingredients

• 2 large zucchini (about 1.5 lbs)

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 3 tablespoons honey or pure maple syrup

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• Pinch of salt

Optional Toppings

• ½ cup toasted walnuts or pecans, chopped

• ⅓ cup dried cranberries or raisins

• Greek yogurt for serving

• Freshly whipped cream

• Extra cinnamon for dusting

Directions

1. Prepare the Zoodles Wash and trim the ends of the zucchini. Using a spiralizer or vegetable peeler, create long, thin noodle-like strips. Pat the zoodles dry with paper towels.

2. Remove Excess Moisture Heat 1 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the zoodles and sauté for 2-3 minutes, stirring gently, until they begin to soften and release some moisture. Remove from heat and drain any excess liquid.

3. Create the Sweet Coating Return the skillet to low heat. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt. Stir until the butter is melted and fragrant.

4. Add Sweetness Drizzle in the honey or maple syrup and vanilla extract. Toss the zoodles gently to coat evenly. Cook for 1-2 minutes until the sauce lightly caramelizes.

5. Add Optional Ingredients If using, fold in the toasted nuts and dried fruit. Cook for another minute to warm through.

6. Serve Remove from heat and serve immediately while warm. Top with a dollop of Greek yogurt or whipped cream, and dust with additional cinnamon if desired.

Chef's Notes

• Moisture Control: The key to success is removing excess moisture from the zucchini to prevent a watery dessert

• Texture: Don't overcook the zoodles - they should be tender but still have a slight bite

• Flavor Variations: Try adding a pinch of nutmeg, cardamom, or orange zest for different flavor profiles

• Make-Ahead: This dessert is best served fresh and warm, but can be gently reheated if needed

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🐾 Vegas Update

Vegas was wildly unimpressed by the spiraliser—he gave it the side-eye and left the room in a huff. But when the parmesan came out, he returned with the casual swagger of a cat who absolutely didn’t just chase a zoodle across the kitchen floor. He recommends skipping the raw stuff and heading straight for the cheese. Classic.