Pasta primavera gets a makeover in this zucchini noodle primavera featuring fresh zucchini noodles, a bright herby sauce and loads of fresh spring vegetables.
What comes to mind when you think of pasta primavera? Chances are you think of a rather bland pasta dish with a light cream sauce and a scattering of vegetables thrown in.
Pasta primavera, invented famously by Le Cirque restaurant back in the heyday of nouvelle cuisine has since largely fallen out of favor. Although “primavera” means spring too many versions of the dish contained very few ingredients that had anything to do with spring with any vegetables most often overcooked into soggy submission. So I thought it was high time the classic dish got a bit of a makeover.
This zucchini noodle primavera is my version of spring pasta that’s lightened up by using zucchini noodles instead of traditional noodles and packed with loads of springtime favorites like asparagus, snap peas and broccolini. The whole dish is a veritable cornucopia of green and the kind of food that makes you feel good after you’ve polished off your plate, not heavy and weighed down. Not to mention that it’s an easy and delicious way to get in your daily servings of vegetables.
In a matter of moments you can whizz together the sauce and quickly cook the vegetables. If you have a spiralizer or a julienne peeler you can also easily make your own zucchini noodles or just buy them pre-made at your grocery store.
I’ve also swapped out the original cream sauce for a fresh pesto inspired mix of dill, parsley and pistachios with a hint of lemon zest. The bright tasting sauce is a natural complement to the lightly blanched vegetables and the perfect dish to make this time of year.
It’s a quick and simple “pasta” that captures the essence of springtime cooking: fresh and filled with green.
Zucchini Noodle Pistachio Pesto Primavera (Paleo,Vegan)
Pasta primavera gets a makeover in this zucchini noodle primavera featuring fresh zucchini noodles, a bright herby sauce and loads of fresh spring vegetables.
Ingredients
For the pistachio dill pesto:
- 2 Tablespoons/ 18g pistachios
- ¼ cup dill, stems removed
- ¼ cup flat leaf parsley, stems removed
- Lemon zest from ½ a lemon
- 1 small clove of garlic
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
For the pasta:
- 1 small bunch broccolini, cut into 2-inch pieces
- ½ a bunch of asparagus, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 1 cup snap peas, string removed and cut in half if large
- 3-4 zucchini, made into noodles with a spiralizer or julienne peeler
Instructions
- In a small food processor, pulse pistachios until finely chopped, add dill, parsley, lemon zest, garlic and salt; pulse again until finely chopped. With motor running, add in olive oil until smooth.
- Bring large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Add broccolini, asparagus and snap peas to boiling water and blanch for 2-3 minutes or until tender but firm. Transfer to an ice bath to cool, drain and gently pat dry.
- Toss zucchini noodles with pistachio dill pesto, gently stir in blanched vegetables to coat.
- Serve at room temperature.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 255Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 323mgCarbohydrates: 24gFiber: 6gSugar: 7gProtein: 8g
Nutritional information for recipes contained on this website, such as calories, fat, carbs, etc. are only estimates and are not guaranteed to be accurate.
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Sylvie Shirazi is the recipe developer and food photographer behind Gourmande in the Kitchen. For the last 10 years she’s been making eating more healthfully easy and accessible with gluten-free, grain-free, paleo and vegan recipes that are free from processed ingredients.
Hello Sylvie,
I enjoy your recipes very much! Thank you so much for sharing them with all of us.
I recently made the Zucchini Noodle Pistachio Pesto Primavera. I had to ad lib on the amount of pistachios though, because they were not mentioned in the ingredient list. We enjoyed it the way I made it, but I would still like to know the amount you suggest. Hoping to hear from you,
Meg Hobbes
I’m glad you enjoyed the recipes and I apologize for the oversight, the correct amount is 2 Tablespoons and the recipe has been updated to reflect that!
hank you, Sylvie! That is the amount I guessed. We have had the meal twice now. Both times I have had to add more olive oil. I also cut my vegetables into 1″ pieces instead of 2″ for easier eating. We are trying to eat a more plant based diet and appreciate wonderful recipes like this!
How many pistachios
2 Tablespoons of pistachios!
Hi!
You didn’t include the quantity of pistachios necessary to make the pesto. How much do I need?
Looks amazing!!!
Thank you 🙂
I apologize for the oversight, the correct amount is 2 Tablespoons!
I absolutely love zoodles. What a great idea to add the other veggies in! This is a perfect spring dish, especially for lent as we are meatless on Fridays!
This recipe looks great, and I can’t wait to try it! However, I’m looking everywhere for the amount of pistachios I am supposed to use> I even asked my husband to find it for me, since I can’t. I think I’m going nuts! Help!
No you are right, it was not listed! I accidentally omitted the amount of pistachios from the original recipe but have updated it with the correct amount of 2 Tablespoons.
This looks and sounds amazing! For the pesto, how much pistachios? I didn’t see a measurement for that ingredient.
2 Tablespoons is the correct amount, I’ve updated the recipe to reflect that.
Don’t see the amount of pistachios listed in the recipe.
My apologies, the recipe has been updated to reflect the correct amount of 2 Tablespoons!