Zucchini Pesto Pasta – Kalyn's Kitchen

Quick and easy zucchini pesto pasta is a delicious family dinner during zucchini season that’s perfect for a meatless dinner option! Read about the pasta we used to make it so much lower in carbs, as well as other tips for making this dish low in carbs.

PIN zucchini pesto pasta to try later!

This is the time of year when zucchini are plentiful, and if you have a garden, you’ll probably get a few straight zucchini or yellow squash every other day. The other thing that is plentiful at this time of year is basil, and if I still had a garden, I would be freezing basil And make my favourite Basil pesto with lemon.

I think it was my favorite basil pesto ideas that originally inspired this zucchini pesto pasta Because years ago when I told my nephew Jake that he would make it, he asked where the recipe was and I pressed the side of my forehead. This recipe It was one of the spontaneous cooking ideas that just popped into my mind: Why not mix a little zucchini with garlic to taste great with pasta with basil pesto?

And when Kara and I cooked for the first time in New apartment kitchen To update the recipe with better pictures, we also decided to try a new batch of low-carb pasta to make this favorite recipe a little lower in carbs. We loved how it turned out!

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

Penne pasta, or similar shape (we used Gourmet Fiber pasta, see notes below)
salt for pasta cooking water
zucchini
minced garlic (affiliate link)
olive oil (affiliate link)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper for seasoning zucchini
Basil pesto with lemonOr any other pesto of your choice
pasta cooking water

What low carb pasta did we use in this recipe?

After I heard about it Gourmet Light Pasta (Referral link) From a few people, I bought some online and absolutely loved this recipe. This high-fiber pasta cut the net carbs in this recipe down to about 18 net carbs per serving. And it tasted like regular pasta!

However, the bad news about Fiber Gourmet pasta is that they are pricey, even in a recipe like this where we used one box to make 6 servings. I’ve searched all over the web and haven’t found any low priced site that is sold by the box when shipping costs are added. The best price I found was on Amazon where you can buy a pack of 12 and get it for $3.99 per box. But if you only buy two boxes at a time on Amazon, it’s about $10.00 a box. For me, having “real” pasta without a lot of carbs was so fun that I bought a 12-pack, but if anyone finds it at a lower price for fewer boxes, I’d love to know where to find it.

How can you make a version lower in carbohydrates?

If you’re watching carbs, you can make another type of carb using twice the amount of zucchini and half the amount of pasta. I also think this recipe would be delicious with Palmini Low-Carb Linguini (Referral link) If you are a fan of Palmini. I will cut the linguine into shorter pieces for this dish.

Can you make this with purchased pesto?

Of course there are many people who do not have a garden that produces basil in large quantities, and you can certainly make this with Buy basil pesto in a jar.

Want more pesto recipes?

paying off Low carb keto recipes with pesto sauce For lots of good ideas for using this favorite sauce made with basil!

How to make zucchini pesto:

(Scroll down for the full recipe with nutritional information.)

This is a picture from Gourmet Light Pasta (referral link) we used. The cooking time of pasta is 15-17 minutes, and we have already cooked it all this time. Check the time on the packaging if you are using a different brand.
Begin in a pot of boiling water for pasta with salting water.
Once the water boils, add the pasta, stir, and reduce the heat to medium or high enough to keep the water gently simmering.
Measure out the minced garlic and pesto. You can use more or less pesto as desired.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet, add chopped garlic and cook for about a minute.
Once you smell the garlic, add the zucchini, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and cook until just as tender as you like.
When the zucchini is soft and crunchy, add the pesto and mix gently with the zucchini. Cook for a minute or two.
If the pasta is not cooked by this time, turn off the heat for a minute.
When the pasta is cooked, extract ½ cup of the cooking water if you think you’ll want to add a little more. (I used the same measuring cup that I measured the pesto in!)
Drain the pasta into a colander set in the sink.
Then combine the hot pasta with the zucchini and pesto mixture, adding as much of the pasta cooking water as you need until the mixture is well combined. (We didn’t end up adding any extra water to the low-carb pasta we used.)
Cook for just two minutes to get pesto-flavored pasta.
Serve hot with Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for a few days and gently reheated in the microwave.

More interesting ways to use zucchini:

Grilled Greek Zucchini Salad From Kalin’s Kitchen

slow cooker zucchini recipes From a slow cooker or pressure cooker

Easy zucchini bread with cheese From Kalin’s Kitchen

ratatouille recipes (slow cooker or instant pot) From a slow cooker or pressure cooker

zucchini taco boats From Kalin’s Kitchen

instant zucchini recipes From a slow cooker or pressure cooker

Ingredients

8 oz. Gourmet Fiber Gourmet Lite Penne (or other forms of pasta or other pasta of your choice, see notes)

salt for pasta cooking water

3 medium zucchini (see notes)

2 tons minced garlic

2 tons of olive oil (more or less to taste)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper for seasoning zucchini

1 cup basil pesto of your choice (see notes)

1/2 cup pasta cooking water (optional)

1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

instructions

Fill a large saucepan with water, add about 2 tsp. Salt, and let the water boil while you prepare the other ingredients.
Wash the zucchini if necessary, cut the ends, then cut in half lengthwise and cut into half-moon-shaped slices. (If the zucchini is really large, you may want to cut it into quarters before slicing it.)
Measure out 1 cup of basil pesto, and chop enough fresh garlic to make 2 tablespoons of garlic, or use minced garlic from a jar if you like.
Once the water boils, add the pasta, stir, and reduce the heat to medium or high enough to keep the water gently simmering.
Cook the pasta for about 17 minutes for the Fiber Gourmet Light Penne, or as directed on the package, then measure out 1/2 cup of the pre-drained pasta cooking water. (Don’t overcook, the pasta should have some stinging.)
While the pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil in a very large skillet over medium to high heat. (Use a skillet large enough to accommodate the pasta when you cook it.)
When the oil is hot, add the minced garlic, reduce the heat to medium, and fry until you smell the garlic, about 1 minute. (Don’t let the garlic burn!)
Then add the zucchini slices, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and cook until the zucchini is tender and crispy, about 5 minutes. (Taste a piece to see if it has cooked the way you want it to. I stop cooking when it is still somewhat crisp.)
Add the pesto to the cooked zucchini and stir gently. (If the pasta is not cooked yet, turn off the heat.)
Add the drained cooked pasta to the zucchini/pesto mixture and gently mix together, adding as much of the pasta cooking water as you think it needs to mix well.
Cook the zucchini pasta mixture for a few more minutes for pesto-flavored pasta.
Serve hot, sprinkled with Parmesan cheese, if desired.
This will keep in the refrigerator for a day or two.

Notes

If you are using another type of pasta, the cooking time will be shorter, use the package directions.

used Basil pesto with lemon for this recipe. Use more or less pesto as desired.

I used zucchini about 9 inches long.

The nutritional information for this recipe is based on the light, low-carb fiber pasta we used. Be sure to count the net carbs, as this pasta contains a lot of fiber.

Recipe created by Kalyn.

Nutrition information:

fruit:

serving size:

1

Amount per service:
Calories: 383Total fat: 29 gramsSaturated fat: 5.9 gramsUnsaturated fats: 0 gramsUnsaturated fats: 19.9 gramsCholesterol: 17 mgsodium: 721 mgCarbohydrates: 35.5 gramsthe basic: 17.6 gsugar: 3.1 gramsprotein: 12.9 grams

Nutrition information is calculated automatically by the Recipe Plug-In I’m using. I am not a dietitian and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, as many variables affect these calculations.

Low Carb Diet / Low Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This recipe with the light Gourmet Fiber pasta we used makes a dish with about 18 net carbs per serving. If you don’t want to buy that pasta, you can make a lower-carb version using twice the amount of zucchini and half the amount of pasta, or buy using another low-carb, high-fiber pasta on the market. or make it with Palmini Low-Carb Linguini (Continued link) For a truly low-carb version. With whole-grain pasta, you can eat a small serving of this zucchini pesto pasta for stage 2 or 3 of the original South Beach Diet, but this dish is high in fat according to the South Beach Diet guidelines. For South Beach, I would use portion control and serve with a salad that isn’t high in fat.

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Historical notes for this recipe:
This recipe was published in 2011. Recently updated with more information and a low carb pasta option in 2022.