Recipe: Zucchini Noodles with Tomatoes and Corn — Quick Dinner Recipes from The Kitchn

There is nothing wrong with your screen. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. What you see before you are not strands of pasta, but swirls of spiralized zucchini! It's time to change things up from the usual summer salad and give these vegetable "noodles" a try.

I can't believe it's taken me this long to get my hands on a vegetable spiralizer. After months of hemming and hawing over which model to purchase, I ended up with a very inexpensive model (read: about $10 with a coupon at Bed Bath & Beyond) that works similarly to a pencil sharpener. Insert zucchini, twist clockwise, and a spiral of noodles come out the side. While it requires a little more elbow grease than one of the hand-cranked spiralizers, I like that this one fits easily in a kitchen drawer and requires just a quick rinse and scrub after use.

If you haven't gotten a vegetable spiralizer (and unlike me, have no burning desire to own one), you have lots of other options to get from squash to noodle. Use a vegetable peeler or mandoline to create wide, tagliatelle-like strands, or run the squash lengthwise over a julienne slicer for more spaghetti-like noodles. Just be sure to stop slicing once you reach the seedy core.

As the strands of zucchini marinate in a garlicky champagne vinaigrette, they become supple and noodle-like — you can twirl them around your fork just like a bite of linguine! Their texture is more tender than pasta, with a just a bit of al dente resistance. Tossed with cherry tomatoes, fresh basil and sweet, raw kernels of corn, they make for a nice twist on a summer salad.

Served as a first course, side dish, or a light lunch, you can shave slivers of Parmesan cheese over the top or leave it unadorned for a vegan option. Either way, this trompe-l'oeil salad is as pretty as it is delicious.

Zucchini Noodles with Tomatoes and Corn

Serves 4

For the salad:
1 1/2 pounds (4 medium-sized) zucchini, spiralized
2 ears fresh corn (white or yellow), kernels removed from cob
1 dry pint cherry tomatoes, halved

For the vinaigrette:
1/4 cup champagne vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup grapeseed or other neutral, light oil
1 garlic clove, crushed or grated on a fine microplane
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar

To serve:
1/2 cup basil leaves, loosely packed
1/2 cup shaved Parmesan cheese (optional)

In a salad bowl or wide pasta serving bowl, combine the zucchini, corn, and tomatoes.

In a small (1- to 2-cup) jar, tupperware, or other tight-lidded container, combine the vinegar, oils, garlic, salt, and sugar. Shake vigorously to combine.

Pour the vinaigrette over the salad, and toss to coat the zucchini "noodles" evenly. Let stand for a few minutes until the noodles have softened enough to twirl on a fork. Sprinkle basil leaves and Parmesan cheese over the top of the salad just before serving.

(Image credits: Coco Morante)

via Recipe | The Kitchn http://ift.tt/1migjRO

Put the internet to work for you.

Turn off or edit this Recipe