Zucchini Noodles with Pesto Cream Sauce

So we are on day one of our three uses of pesto! This first recipe using our “Perfect Pesto” is this amazing pesto cream sauce. I love this sauce. I could eat it like soup…seriously. And it is SO easy to make!

As for the zucchini noodles, if you don’t want to go through the trouble of making those, you can absolutely just use whole wheat pasta instead. The point of this recipe is the sauce.

So for the zucchini noodles (should you choose to make them), you start with 3 zucchini. This made enough for one big bowl of noodles, or two small sides. If you want to make a bigger portion, you can easily double the zucchini to make more noodles.

So you cut off the tops and bottoms and then use something called a “spiralizer” to make them into noodles. For those of you who have no clue what I’m talking about, it looks like this:

Essentially all this does is make long julienne slices, so if you have a mandolin or any other tool that can julienne vegetables you are good to go.

You put your zucchini in the top and just keep turning it, creating cute little zucchini noodles!

Pretty cool!

I’m not sure if this happens to everyone who uses spiralizers or if I am just missing something, but I always have these little guys left over once I am done.

I can’t seem to get any more noodles out of them at this point. So if this happens to you too, you are not alone.

Annnyywaaay, so once your zucchini has been turned into noodles, throw them into a boiling pot of salted water for about a minute. Then transfer them immediately into a bowl of ice water. This will stop the cooking process and ensure you don’t have mushy zucchini!

Noodles!

So now you make your cream sauce. You start with a basic roux, which is a mixture of flour and butter. Just one tablespoon of each. Melt the butter in the pan, add your flour, and then whisk together for a few minutes so the flour taste can cook out.

Add in 1 1/4 cups of milk to your roux, and whisk!

Just keep whisking and simmering your sauce until it is nice and thick.

And then you add the star of the dish: the pesto. Seriously, the pesto takes this basic cream sauce to a whole new level. It adds SO much flavor and depth. It makes the sauce taste soooo good.

So add 2 tablespoons of pesto to your cream sauce.

And whisk together! Try your sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste.

So like I said, zucchini noodles are a great healthy option for a noodle substitute here, but the point of this recipe is the sauce. You can put it over zucchini noodles or you can put it over regular pasta. It is delicious either way!

Yum.

Next up for day two is Pesto Chicken Salad Pita Pockets!

Here is the recipe:

Zucchini Noodles with Pesto Cream Sauce

• Author: Annie Chesson
• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 10 mins
• Total Time: 15 mins
• Yield: 1 large serving or 2 small sides 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 3 Zucchini
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 1/4 cups 2 % milk
• 2 tablespoons pesto
• Salt and Pepper

Instructions

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil
2. Cut off the tops and bottoms of the zucchini and use a veggie spiralizer (or any tool that juliennes vegetables) to make the zucchini into “noodles”
3. Put the zucchini “noodles” into the pot of boiling water for a minute, and then transfer them to a bowl of ice water
4. After about thirty seconds, take the zucchini noodles out and place on paper towels to dry out a bit
5. For the pesto cream sauce, start with melting one tablespoon of butter in a pan
6. Once the butter is melted, whisk in one tablespoon of flour and cook for a minute or two to let the flour taste cook off
7. Add your milk, and whisk together
8. Bring your sauce to a simmer
9. Simmer your sauce until it has thickened
10. Remove from heat and add two tablespoons of pesto
11. Whisk to combine
12. Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste
13. Add your zucchini into your sauce, and stir until the sauce is coating all the “noodles”