Zucchini Noodles aka Zoodles (Without Spiralizer)-Easy and Healthy Lunch

I know it has been too long that I posted here but trust me, this space is always in my mind. And I feel bad for my absence here. But life is getting busy with other responsibilities and with summer here, there are so many activities already in my calendar. Anyways, I will try my best to keep this space alive.

Okay, "zoodles" or "zasta", however you call them. They are viral all over the internet and caught my fancy the first day I saw them. These are noodles or pasta made from zucchini. Sounds weird, right? But they are yummy for your mouth and waist line. So what took me so long to post this? Well, I was trying to get the right tool, a spiralizer, to make the "zoodles" as shown in thousands other blogs. But unfortunately, there are not too many good options available to me to buy from. Also, I hate a kitchen appliance that is not used regularly, or is not multi functional and thus I am not still sure whether I want to invest in it or not.

So however I was eager to try it, I kept myself holding back. Then one day I said, enough is enough, and tried my good old veggie peeler to make ribbons of the zucchini I had in my kitchen. So technically these are not "noodles" but more like "ribbons", but that does not make it less tasty at all. And since I started doing it, I am not stopping at all. In the past ten days, I had this "zasta" or zucchini pasta, for six days. There is no need for me to tell that these are super healthy, but also they are easy to make and tasty, which is really important for me.

Ingredients:

Zuchhini - 1 largish (I peeled them using my veggie peeler and left the skin on)
Oninon - 1 red medium, sliced
Tomato - 1 medium, chopped fine 
Green pepper - 1 medium, sliced thin
Oil - 1/2 tablespoon
Salt - to taste
Pepper - to taste
Mozarella - 1/4 cup, grated (optional)

I medium zucchini serves as one serving. Peel them (you can use the spiralizer, or julienne peeler if you have one) in long ribbons till you reach the core with seeds.

Cut your veggies as you like and keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan, add the onions and sauté till soft and translucent. Add the tomatoes and green pepper to it.

Add the zucchini ribbons to it and stir on high heat. Add salt and crushed pepper. Stir fast on high heat for few inures till the zucchini is cooked. Be careful not to burn it. Adding salt will release water so cooking in high heat prevents the zucchini from being too soggy.

Ready! Enjoy your pasta with out the carb load.

You can eat this at this stage or go to the next step, which I am very fond of. 

Transfer it to a oven safe dish. Add grated cheese (I used mozzarella, use whatever you have), and bake for 3-5 minutes, or till the cheese has melted well. 

Yummy! It even tastes and smells like pizza to me.  (I am drooling while editing this post, ughh)

Quick tip: You can also microwave the cheese until melted, it may not have the crusty top, but is delicious in its own away.

Enjoy!