Some days you just want to stay at home and curl up in bed all day. Forecast says that rainy season is up again, hence Manila traffic could get a whole lot worse, too. So to ease the rainy days away, I tried the zucchini pasta recipe from thefatkidinside –sounds healthy right?
I’ve always thought of zucchini as a more beautiful name of cucumber (I know, how shallow). Turns out that zucchini is more like an unriped melon in texture: consistent in toughness, easy to slice as it won’t slip, and tastes refreshing but not sweet. To some extent it is similar to a cucumber as both are green, cylindrical, and have seeds; however the texture of the two varies. Zucchinis appear dry while cucumbers have a bumpy outer core. (AHA!)
The recipe asks to use a Julienne peeler, something I’ve discovered only upon reading the blog. It does wonders of turning vegetables into thin noodle-like strips. I thought we have it at home so I was excited to go straight from work. I rode the MRT and dropped by Landmark to gather my ingredients. Then I mustered Manila traffic. It was raining and everybody’s rushing home. The tiny drops of rain falling on the roof of the jeepney added weight to my excitement and impatience. I can’t wait any longer. I want to do it and try it, for the first time.
When I got home I checked if we have the Julienne peeler, unfortunately no. I almost gave up because the weather makes me feel lazy. But I manually did it. I grated the zucchini patiently using a knife and it was actually a rewarding experience. I promised myself that the next time I do this, I’ll buy a Julienne peeler beforehand. Hahaha!
And so without further ado, here’s the recipe I used. I tweaked it a bit, good for two (on diet) persons:
Ingredients:
1 zucchini, sliced noodle strips
1 riped avocado, cubed
4 cloves of garlic, sliced
4 tbsp. sunflower seeds
4 pcs. small tomatoes
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
1/2 lemon
Basil leaves (optional)
Procedure:
1. Heat the pan with olive oil.
2. Toss in the garlic. Don’t burn.
3. Place the sliced zucchini in the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes.
4. Turn off the heat.
5. Add the tomato and sunflower seeds in the pasta. Mix carefully.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste.
7. Squeeze in the lemon and top with basil. (For this version, I used dried oregano as there was no basil available in the market earlier)
8. Serve!
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Total cost: Around 300php