Anyone who knew me during my uni days (my first lot of uni days) knows that I madly love spaghetti. So much so that I think I ate it 4-5 times a week as an undergrad. Usually with a Bolognese sauce. Sometimes with a tuna and tomato sauce (dunno what I was thinking with that one).
Fast forward a few years (OK, maybe it’s more than a few…) and I still madly love spaghetti, but sadly it doesn’t love me. I doubt I even eat it 4-5 times a month these days.
However, I do still love all the accompaniments.
Anyone who knows me also knows I love kitchen gadgets. So when my friend Alisha was posting piccies of her new veggie spiraliser on facebook I INSTANTLY KNEW that I had to have one. I went for the fancypants Gefu spiral slicer spiralfix as it fits a whole beetroot without me having to chop it up.
To the total amusement of hubby and Mr13 I’ve been spiralising all veggies for the last 3 days. Yep, I’m addicted.
Look how cool this is!!! Looooong spirals of veggies
I’m trying for a few new and healthier meals, so thought I’d make zoodles carbonara. Zucchini noodles = zoodles. Geddit? Cute isn’t it? (I can’t take credit for the cute name though)
Did you know that a real carbonara is basically just eggs and bacon (actually the real thing uses cured pork jowl, but bacon is easier to find. Plus it’s ALWAYS in my fridge) with spaghetti? No cream. No mushrooms. No onion. And who doesn’t love eggs and bacon!
Zoodles carbonara
by Mel Kettle
Serves 1
What you need:
- 200g zucchini, spiralised (grated will also work if you don’t have a spiralising gadget)
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- 2 short cut rashers of bacon (or 1 long rasher with the yummy fatty bits), diced into small pieces
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- sprinkling of grated parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper to taste
What you do:
Heat the frypan and add the bacon with the garlic on top (so it doesn’t burn). I find there is enough fat in the bacon, but add a bit of oil if you need to. Cook for 3-4 minutes then add the zucchini. Cook for another minute (no longer!). Add the egg and mix carefully so the zoodles don’t break. Serve into a bowl, add parmesan, salt and pepper to taste. YUM!
Do you like carbonara? And the original way or with cream?
Yummo.
I have a julienne peeler (http://www.petersofkensington.com.au/Public/Zyliss-Julienne-Peeler-Orange.aspx) which does the same thing to the zucchini.
I have to admit I like my carbonara with cream, but I will give this version a go.
let me know what you think Sally.
Think I might have to give this a go – sounds yum
That looks amazing, I’m going to try it on my kids. I think they will love it.
I’m with you Mel – garlic, bacon and egg is all you need!
Where was this recipe a month ago when I was drowning in zucchini 😉 I have been having a lot of zucchini and bacon over the last couple of weeks, but never thought to put the egg in. I do love a classic carbonara but this sounds divine too.
This looks amazing! I am a huge fan of the zucchini. Yummo. Definitely wanting to try!
I adore zucchini noodles and most often eat them raw. Haven’t tried bacon yet. I have a feeling bacon, egg and some chorizo would make a lovely zoodle breakfast.
We had this again last night for dinner – it’s a great quick option when you’re tired. I added a few mushrooms too – soooo good!
I would like to know where to get the spiraliser and how much it might cost. The big question is, does it really work as I have had other spiralisers before and have been very disappointed. Looking forward to hearing from you.
Regards
Diane 🙂
hi Diane, I bought it from a kitchen shop in Brisbane but have also seen them online. It’s this one – http://www.kitchenwarehouse.com.au/gefu-spirelli-duo-vegetable-spiral-cutter-green-1.html – I haven’t used any others but am very impressed with it.
Quick and delicious. I cooked the zucchini longer and because I had some on hand, I did add a bit of cream.