Happy Monday!!
Most of my Mondays are spent stressing over the long “To Do” list I’ve been procrastinating all weekend. However, yesterday I was in cleaning mode and scrubbed down my apartment after hosting my friend’s birthday bash.
You would be surprised how much damage seven college students can do. Or maybe not?
I was on a roll with cleaning and decided to finish the rest of my check list. The next item on my list was to meal prep for the week. I decided that it was time to whip out the spiralizer.
My roommate has a spiralizer that she used a couple times before I moved in. After I saw the box in the kitchen, I knew I needed to try it out and see if spiralizers are worth all the hype.
Spiralizers are tools that turns veggies into noodles. Most spiralizers are bigger than a toaster, but some can fit in the palm of your hand. I prefer the bigger spiralizers *like this one* because they are more efficient.
Despite popular belief, these pasta-like ribbons weren’t invented in the carb-phobic era. The veggie strips were actually used to garnish food in the ’80 and ’90s! Aren’t they gorge?!
Why are these veggie ribbons making a comeback in the carb-phobic era?? Because they are crazy low in calories and carbs; two cups of noodles contain 480 calories, 90 grams of carbs, and 2 grams of fiber while two cups of zucchini zoodles are 66 calories, 12 grams of carbs, and 4 grams of fiber. I’m not into a carb-free diet, but I do think it’s important to watch portion size.
A bowl of pasta from noodles and co. is delicious, but it contains WAY more carbs, sodium, and fat than we need. I have the appetite of a Queen and could eat a whole bowl of noodles, but I don’t care for that extra crap my body doesn’t need! Zoodles have a lot more bang for your buck. One medium zucchini has about :
- 3 milligrams vitamin C (56 percent DV)
- 4 milligrams vitamin B6 (21 percent DV)
- 3 milligrams manganese (17 percent DV)
- 3 milligrams riboflavin (16 percent DV)
- 514 milligrams potassium (15 percent DV)
- 57 milligrams folate (14 percent DV)
- 4 milligrams vitamin K (11 percent DV)
I also really wanted to meal prep healthy food after a weekend of cupcakes, sugary drinks, and late nights; I need to clean all that crap out of my body! No ragrats tho…
So… I whipped out that spiralizer and put 👏🏻 it 👏🏻 to 👏🏻 work.
Honestly, I felt like a child in a toy store… ( I hate me too ). But seriously, it is so much fun to make! The product is even more fun to eat.
Raw zoodles add more volume and a crunchy texture to salads. If you are looking for a way to jazz up your salad, add zoodles just as done in the 80 and 90’s!
Another way to prep zoodles is by sautéing them! It does significantly reduces the volume so make sure to add some extra. I loaded my pan with zoodles and they cooked down just like spinach.
I sautéed my zoodles in extra virgin olive oil then added some more ingredients for more flavor.
Recipe
Chicken
Parsley
Garlic
EVOO
Lemon
Salt + Pepper
Parmesan Cheese
Directions
Heat a pan to medium-high heat with a generous splash of EVOO. Add zoodles and cook for a couple minutes, until tender but still has a crunch. Remove pan from heat and scoop zoodles onto a paper towel and let them sit to remove some moisture. Set aside. In a small bowl, mix EVOO, garlic, lemon, parsley, salt & pepper. Add cooked zoodles and the small bowl mixture to the pan and mix. Sprinkle with parm and dig in!
What are your thoughts on zoodles??