Paleo Pesto Avocado Bacon Zucchini Pasta “Zoodles” (Paleo + Gluten Free)
“I could never give up pasta!” It’s a common response I get when I explain what I’ve cut out of my diet. The main food people seem to have a aversion to letting go of is pasta, with pizza a close second. 😀 Truthfully, I don’t feel like I’ve cut any of those “comfort foods” out of my diet, and I certainly don’t miss the sluggish, bloated feeling after having a SAD meal. We still eat TONS of pasta- we simply make our noodles out of vegetables. The process is super easy- you just need some sort of spiralizer. It took Whitney seconds to turn 2 zucchinis into noodles- or zoodles, as we call them. Since I’m on day 5 of operation keep my herb garden alive (a new record!)- we took advantage of the fresh basil to make Paleo Pesto Avocado & Bacon Zoodles!
The spiralizer that we use can be found by clicking here:
Spiralizer Tri-Blade Vegetable Slicer, Strongest-and-Heaviest Duty, Best Veggie Pasta & Spaghetti Maker
Equipment
- Spiralizer
- Food Processor
- Frying Pan
- Mixing Bowl
- Kitchen Tongs
Ingredients
- 2 medium zucchini
- 2 ripe avocados
- 6 oz of bacon (or more if you like!)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/4 cup fresh basil
- salt and pepper to taste
- sun dried tomatoes for garnish
- 1 tablespoon Organic EVOO
Not all lemon juice is created equal! Most common brands are from concentrate and have added (unnecessary) preservatives. This lemon juice from Santa Cruz is
– Organic (no “cides” – pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, etc.)
– One ingredient: lemon juice! (no preservatives like sodium benzoate or sodium sulfite)
– NOT from concentrate
– Packaged in a glass bottle (no BPA)
You can really taste the difference in the quality of lemon juice- especially in clean and simple recipes like this one. I love to add a splash to my drinking water too! You can find it here:
Santa Cruz Juice, Lemon, 100% Organic, 16 oz
Instructions
- Zoodle your zucchinis! Set aside in a large mixing bowl.
- In a frying pan- fry up the bacon.
- While the bacon is cooking, add avocado, basil, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper to a food processor. Blend until smooth + creamy.
- Remove bacon from frying pan, and place on a plate with a paper towel to absorb the extra grease. Save the grease in the pan!
- On medium high- add the zoodles to the frying pan. Toss occasionally with kitchen tongs. Cook for 5-7 minutes, depending on how crunchy you want your zoodles. We prefer a little crunch to ours.
- Place the zoodles in a large mixing bowl. Add pesto avocado sauce and bacon. Using kitchen tongs, toss the zoodles until evenly coated.
- Top with sun dried tomatoes and fresh basil.
This dish is perfect by itself, or as a base for other additions. You could add sliced chicken breast or grilled shrimp for a more complete meal. I think next time we are going to top our Paleo Pesto Avocado and Bacon Zucchini Zoodles with a fried egg- because #alwaysaddanegg.
Leave a comment: what additions are you going to make?