This is the first summer in a long time that I didn’t plant a garden. You guys know that with my background in horticulture and my current-ground (yes I made that term up, why doesn’t anyone else say it?) in food, that a vegetable garden is something I’m passionate about. I am really missing a backyard abundant in tomatoes, zucchini, and fresh herbs this year. The reason why we didn’t plant anything earlier this spring is because we’re moving! We’re building a house right now (not far from where we currently live, in Idaho) and the thought of tending my precious garden all summer long and then leaving it behind just when everything was ready to eat pained my heart. Although now I’m kind of regretting that decision because our house probably won’t be done until after the growing season so had I planned that better, I could have been up to my ears in squash right now.
Buuuut, back to the food. I was thinking about my non-existent garden the other day and started craving sweet little tomatoes and tender zucchini.
I created this recipe to be a healthy one! I’m in a calorie-counting phase of life at the moment, so I wanted to show you how you can still have really delicious, filling food- even pasta and cream sauce, and stick to a healthy diet. There are a few great tricks in here, so pay attention folks. Let’s get cookin’.
Here’s one of the secrets to this recipe. It’s a trick I sometimes use on my kids. Shhhh… Slice a zucchini in thin slices vertically. I used a mandoline to make it quick and easy. If you don’t have a mandoline, it’s a pretty useful kitchen gadget. I use this one– it’s inexpensive and works great! If you don’t have a mandoline, you can use a vegetable peeler. You want them about 1/8 inch thick.
Now cut them the other direction, like this:
Can you see where we’re going here? What do those look like? Noodles, baby! If you want to really trick your kids, peel off the green stuff first and mix it with spaghetti) We’re going to drop these zucchini noodles right into the pot with the pasta, at the end. Since it’s the same size and shape, it blends in perfectly. This allows you to get much more on your plate, with less calories. Win-win! We’ll come back to the zucchini.
Next you’ll need some little tomatoes. I’m using a 10oz carton you can buy at the store. it’s about 2 cups.
Quickly saute those up; it only takes a couple of minutes. You should stop when they look a little blistered and just barely start to burst. At this point they’ve released some sweetness and it’s caramelized in the pan to develop a whole new depth of flavor.
Scoop those little guys out of the pan and set them aside. Chop up a few cloves of garlic and give them a quick saute in your same pan. Once those are golden, add a little chicken broth. As the chicken broth simmers, you can scrape all of the little browned bits off the bottom of the pan- they add tons of flavor here.
Now for the secret to our sinfully creamy sauce. Kate and I almost never use fat-free cream cheese. We don’t recommend it for baking, and I don’t really like it in dips, but the one place it does work really well is when it’s melted into a sauce, like this. We just need the creaminess, and fat-free cream cheese has significantly less calories than even the reduced fat kind. Obviously feel free to use any of the three, but know that fat-free works great.
In the printable instructions I explain the best way to get the cream cheese melted and the sauce smooth, so make sure to read that [note: don’t just drop it in the sauce!] but when it’s all done it’s super creamy and flavorful. And we only used 3 ounces of cream cheese, that’s less than 1/2 of a block. When that’s nice and smooth, toss in some fresh basil and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
Stir it up and then add in the cooked pasta and zucchini. See how creamy that is? It’s not drenched and heavy, it’s just a light coating that adds both flavor and texture to the pasta.
You can stir the tomatoes in, or I like to just place them on top because they look so pretty.
You get those super sweet tomatoes, with pieces of fresh basil and creamy sauce-coated pasta and just a hint of lemon and garlic. It’s the perfect bite.
Now here’s the awesome part. This recipe makes 4 generous main dish servings. Like, that whole bowl you see in the pictures- and in that entire bowl of deliciousness, there are only about 286 calories. Two hundred and eighty six! So if you think you have to give up pasta and creamy sauces when trying to eat healthy, think again. That even leaves plenty of caloric room to toss some grilled chicken on top. And maybe eat a cookie. (I won’t tell if you don’t.)
PrintZucchini Ribbon Pasta with Creamy Lemon-Basil Sauce
- Yield: 4
Description
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb (or 8 oz) fettuccine
- 1 medium zucchini
- 2 tsp olive oil, divided
- 10 ounces grape tomatoes (about 2 cups)
- kosher salt
- black pepper
- 3–4 cloves finely minced garlic
- 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
- 3 ounces fat-free cream cheese
- 1 cup very loosely packed basil, chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice, more if desired
Instructions
Prepare a pot of water and cook pasta according to package instructions. Cut ends off zucchini and slice along the long direction, cutting the zucchini into about ⅛ inch slices. Cut each of those slices into long pieces, about the same size as the fettuccine (see photos above for explanation). Set zucchini aside.
Heat a medium size skillet to medium heat. When hot, add 1 teaspoon olive oil. Add tomatoes and give them a little sprinkle of kosher salt and a few cracks of black pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 3-4 minutes. Just until they start to burst and look blistered. Remove tomatoes from pan and place in a small dish, covered, and set aside.
Add another 1 teaspoon olive oil to the empty pan and add garlic. Stir constantly on medium-low heat for about 30-60 seconds. Add chicken broth. Bring to a simmer and use a spatula to scrape any browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Simmer for 1-2 minutes and then reduce heat to low.
Place cream cheese in a microwave-safe bowl and soften for 20-30 seconds, until it can be easily stirred smooth. Ladle in a couple spoonfuls of the chicken broth mixture into the cream cheese and stir to combine. Once the mixture is smooth, add it to the pan with the remaining broth mixture and whisk until smooth and creamy. Add chopped basil and lemon juice and stir to combine. Taste sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste. (Lemon lovers can also squeeze in extra lemon juice at this point.)
When pasta is just about done, add zucchini strips to pot (so they’re cooking with the pasta). Boil for about 2 minutes, or until tender. Drain zucchini and pasta and combine with sauce. Gently toss in tomatoes, or simply add them on top of each serving. Garnish with additional basil if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4
- Calories: 294kcal
- Sugar: 6g
- Sodium: 674mg
- Fat: 4g
- Saturated Fat: 1g
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 51g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 14g
- Cholesterol: 3mg
Made this as part of the Fit & Fast meal plan- my husband and I both loved it! He asked if he could take some leftovers to work for lunch the next day 🙂
The sauce was pretty thin originally, but thickened up a lot more as it cooled- I stirred it a few times and let it sit for >15 minutes, and it was perfect.
Oh my goodness. This was amazing! Thank you for sharing it with the world 🙂
I made it tonight for my family and it was delicious! I just got a gadget called the veggetti it makes veggies into strands and it worked perfectly thanks for the recipe.
Have you ever made the sauce beforehand and stored it to use a day or two later? I wonder if the texture would be the same if I re-heated the sauce. Thanks!
We had this tonight and it was a big hit for everyone! Thanks for sharing, I’d love to see more of these types (healthy, full of veggies and kid friendly) of recipes!
This is WONDERFUL! I’ve been doing weight watchers for the last while and I counted this to be 7 points per serving (6 if you use a cooking spray instead of oil)! I am thrilled to eat creamy pasta! Roll on more recipes like these for us poor saps who cant stay away from your dessert section 😉
I made this last night and it was delicious! Easy too! Will definately make it again!
How did you know I have more zucchini than I know what to do with? I’ve been looking for zucchini and summer squash recipes and you never disappoint! Thanks!
My favorite OBB recipe is the Zucchini Ribbon Pasta with Creamy Lemon-Basil Sauce, is amazing!! I cooked it for my whole family and they were in love with the pasta!! It is simply amazing, I’m love with it!!
I will be making this again and again. It was delicious!!!!
My whole family LOVED this! Even my kids! We made it twice in just a few days because it was such a huge hit. Thanks for the yummy, fresh summer recipe!
Just made this!! YUM. Sent my vegetarian sister a picture of it saying “BE JEALOUS!” And the next thing you know she showed up at my door for takeout! Great recipe and fun to make too!
This was fantastic! Thanks for a yummy, healthy recipe. We loved it!
I made this Saturday night and added grilled chicken – very yummy!! Will be making this again.
This looks great. I would probably use whole wheat pasta for some extra fiber – I find that pasta is one place in which I can happily sub whole wheat and get 99% of the satisfaction. (Unlike, say, bread…)
This was delicious! I didn’t have fettuccine, so I just cut the zucchini the same size as the Gemelli I was using. I’m also not a huge fan of cooked tomatoes, so I just cut up some fresh Romas and it was absolutely delicious! I’ll probably add some grilled lemon chicken to this for protein next time, but it was amazing as is.
This was very delish! Definitely going to make it again.
Bummer about the garden this year but I’m sure you’ll make up for it next year at the new house. I do have a garden exploding with zucchini and tomatoes (if you were closer I’d say come get some!) so this will be on the menu next week for sure!
Ooohh! Made tonight, with some grilled shrimp on top. Delish! Definitely a keeper, and I think the pasta and sauce will stay warm for a bit while shrimp is grilling when we have company.
Loved this (hubby did too)! Used goat cheese in place of cream cheese (needed to get rid of it) and pasta water instead of broth. Very tasty and looking forward to trying with cream cheese next time. Definitely keeping handy for times when we have more zucchini than we know what to do with….like now 🙂
I made this for dinner tonight, I couldn’t believe how yummy and creamy it was. I ended up using low fat cream cheese because I got it for free with a coupon. My hubby and 3 kiddos loved it. I’m keeping this one on rotation for the summer. Thank You! Please keep the healthy/low calorie recipes coming.
This looks so great! I have gone through every zucchini recipe in my
bag of tricks and this one is sure to be a keeper! I feel like I am wearing
myself out on zucchinis this summer although winter will be here before we know it and I will so miss my favorite veggie!
Oh My! This. was. SOOOOOOOOOOOOO. GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Tomatoes, basil, and zucchini from our garden. Wow! This is definitely a keeper! I used my pampered chef julienne peeler and it was the same size as spaghetti. Perfect! Thanks so much!