Zucchini noodles with avocado cream sauce makes a perfect side dish or light meal for summer. Add some grilled shrimp or chicken for a heartier meal.
It’s been just over a month since Ulysses got home from the police academy and is now around all week again.
Well, “around” is relative with 12-hour shifts, but from a cooking perspective, he’s eating meals at home more or less.
And among all the adjustments that take place when you go from 1 to 2 people living in a house, the food thing has definitely been one of the harder ones for me to get used to again.
OJ containers are finished in 3 days flat..
Bunches of bananas vanish in 2 days. (I live with a primate, not a human)
Every meal is followed by a “second meal” of either cereal, oatmeal or a pb&j sandwich.
Bacon and eggs need to be replenished twice a week now.
I won’t even get into how annoying it is that all this food can be consumed with absolutely no repercussions on the scale for a certain someone….
So, here I’ve been trying to “bulk” up meals for this bottomless pit known as my husband and guess what that means?
More grains, more dessert, more of pretty much everything. But it hasn’t just been him eating it…as I looked in the mirror the other day with my bathing suit on I was like “hmm, this looked a lot better on in February…”
So I had a get real conversation with myself, told Ulys that I’m done playing the European “shove everything you can eat in your face” wife role, and going back to cooking how I normally would.
To which he replied (in typical male fashion) “um, that’s fine. I don’t care.”
Which brings us to zucchini noodles.
Last week, I would’ve boiled up some water and thrown in some whole wheat pasta thinking it would be a more satisfying meal for that man I live with.
This week, I’m happy with my spiralizer, zucchini and a creamy avocado sauce that’s the perfect way to celebrate what summer has to offer.
Ingredients For the Avocado Cream Sauce
The avocado cream sauce is kind of a mix between a pesto and guacamole with these simple ingredients:
- avocado
- fresh basil
- cucumber
- garlic
- almond or coconut milk
- salt and pepper
How To Make Zucchini Noodles with Avocado Cream Sauce
Zucchini noodles are all the rage lately and they couldn’t be an easier base for so many easy healthy recipes!
Making Zoodles the Easy Way
There are a few ways to make veggie noodles:
Julienne peeler
The cheaper (although a bit more tedious way) to make zucchini noodles is with a
The
Spiralizer
Recently, I upgraded to a
Mandoline
This small countertop appliance makes quick work of thinly slicing vegetables and works well with zucchini to create a long flat and wide noodle shape. If you like thinly slicing potatoes for a casserole or making a beet gratin, investing in a mandoline is a good idea.
Y vegetable peeler
As a last resort, a regular Y-shaped peeler can also work for certain vegetable noodles, zucchini included. This is the most tedious way to create veggie noodles but practical if you don’t want to invest in a special tool or appliance.
Make vegetable noodles with ease with a spiralizer! 5 different blades allows for varying thickness for each dish.
If you're making homemade chips or fries, this is perfect for you, and it comes with safety gloves which are really handy.
This handy little tool is the perfect way to make veggie noodles without buying a larger countertop appliance.
A regular vegetable peeler will be tedious but also get the job done to create vegetable noodles.
Once you have your zucchini noodles made, whichever way you decide to do it, the avocado cream sauce comes together in just minutes!
Also try Thai chicken zucchini noodles or Chinese chicken zoodles (<– zucchini noodles “other” name).
Making the Creamy Avocado Sauce
Place the zucchini spirals in a large bowl.
Combine the remaining ingredients for the avocado sauce in a food processor. Pulse until smooth.
Coat the zucchini noodles in the sauce until fully covered.
Garnish with fresh cherry tomatoes and basil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
It’s refreshing and creamy and you can really use this sauce as a base for so many things.
Tips for Making and Serving
- Storing: Keep the leftover avocado sauce in an airtight container or in a mason jar for up to 2 days. I do not recommend freezing it.
- For the most flavor, use a ripe avocado. It should be slightly soft but firm to the touch. The other layer should be a little darker. The greener they are the less ripe.
- This sauce is amazing on chicken and fish!
- Make this recipe quicker by using frozen zucchini spirals if you are short on time.
- If you don’t have coconut milk you can use a little lime juice with a tablespoon or two of Greek yogurt or sour cream.
If you love this recipe, make sure to also check out creamy tomato zucchini noodles for another easy zucchini noodle recipe idea. And don’t miss creamy pesto spaghetti squash noodles either!
Zucchini Noodles with Creamy Avocado Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 small, or 2 large zucchini, ends trimmed and made into noodles with a julienne peeler or spiralizer
- 1 avocado
- 1/2 a cucumber, chopped
- juice of 1/2 a lemon
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened plain almond milk or coconut milk
- handful of fresh basil leaves
- salt & pepper
- halved cherry tomatoes and more basil leaves for garnish
Instructions
- Place zucchini spirals in a large bowl.
- In a food processor, combine the remaining ingredients and process until smooth.
- Toss the zucchini noodles with the avocado sauce until fully coated.
- Garnish with cherry tomatoes and basil leaves, season with more salt and pepper to taste.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
Hi, I’m lazy and buy my zucchini already spiraled. Can anyone give me an idea of how many cups of spiraled zucchini would be equivalent to what this recipe is calling for?
Haha, love it! I’d say 2 large zucchini is probably about 8 cups of loosely packed noodles. Doesn’t need to be exact though.
Has anyone tried the frozen/steamable zucchini noodles with this recipe? Wondering if you just let them thaw so they aren’t cooked. Thoughts?
I haven’t used those but I’m sure they’d be fine. There’s no issue steaming/cooking the noodles first if you’d like. Just be careful to not overcook, a quick saute or steam is all they need otherwise they give off a lot of water.
I’m confused. In the video you throw in the whole bulb of garlic but in the directions it calls for 1 clove. Did I miss something? Which is correct?
It’s just one clove. The video shows the whole bulb close to the camera so you know it’s garlic, but only 1 clove goes into the food processor.
This recioe would make an excellent side dish to a serving of chicken breast or salmon. Not enough protein to be a main dish – however if you’ve had enough protein the rest of the day, it could make a nice light supper. ????
Hello Gina,
I would love to have your cookbook but I don’t see one on your website. Do you have one?
Thank you for all your wonderful ideas. I’m celiac and always looking for make it from scratch interesting recipes. You are incredibly creative.
Blessings in abundance – love what you are doing!
Mary Findley
Are there any recipes that show the nutritional value? I am o a strict regime so need to know how much fat, sugars etc are in recipes. Thank you
according to fitness pal there are 117 calories to 1/4 of recipe along with 10 carbs and 2 fiber
I’m not a cook, and this turned out really yummy and it was really easy to prepare! I’ll be making another batch to take to a potluck next week. It’s going to be a hit! Thanks for the recipe! Do you have any favorite add ins, other than the tomatoes?
Love adding some protein and making a meal of this – rotisserie chicken is easy!
Wait – so you don’t cook the “noodles” at all??
No, you don’t have to cook them. You can if you’d like but they’re fine to eat raw.
OMG! I enjoyed this recipe so much. The cucumer makes the sauce very refreshing. I had to post this before I go for my second plate???? Thank you!!
So glad you enjoyed it!