Paleo zucchini pasta with avocado and basil pesto and turkey meatballs

Paleo zucchini pasta with avocado and basil pesto and turkey meatballs

I have wanted to try this for SO long after seeing people create these amazing dishes that trick you into thinking its a huge plate of pasta but it is actually the super healthy super-vegetable, zucchini!
I finally bought myself a julienne peeler on the weekend for about $13 (later to see one for $8 :| ) and it is proving to be a very worthwhile investment :).

I have done some research and have seen a number of different techniques people use to prepare their zucchini pasta once sliced. The one I ended up choosing worked really well so I will explain it below.

Basil is allllways delicious and paired with avocado, the sauce is incredibly creamy and smooth with a perfectly spiced mild chilli flavour. While the ingredients list looks long, I think it is safe to say that these are ingredients many of you might have in the fridge already. More importantly, this dish is well worth a trip to the shops on the way home.

I believe this pasta could either be served raw (obviously minus the turkey meatballs) or cooked (as mine was).

Before we start, here is the full list of ingredients: (separated into parts later on)

8 green zucchini's
Himalayan Crystal Salt
2.5 ripe avocados
3 cloves of garlic
3 small red chilli's
Juice from 1 lime
2 cups of fresh basil, loosely packed
Small handful fresh parsley
Small handful of fresh chives chopped
1/4 cup almond milk
1 brown onion, finely chopped
1 whole egg
2 tbs almond meal
500g turkey mince
1/4 cup olive oil
Extra olive oil for cooking meatballs
Salt and pepper to taste


Preparing my zucchini pasta


8 green zucchini's - makes 4 big servings of pasta
Himalayan crystal salt


First, wash the outside of the zucchini's under running water.
With each zucchini, start peeling length ways with your julienne peeler to create spaghetti-like strands.
Peel until you reach the seeds in the middle and then begin on the other sides!
Place the zucchini pasta in a large bowl and grind some the salt over the top.
Toss the pasta with some tongs and grind more salt to ensure it is well spread through.
Leave this while preparing the rest of your meal and then in batches, rinse the salt off under cool running water in a sieve - let drain.
The purpose of the salt is to "sweat" the zucchini and you will find that quite a lot of moisture is released from the zucchini during this process.
Place the pasta in batches on paper towel in order to soak up the liquid as much as possible. You may need to discard of the wet towel and start with fresh towel to make sure maximum liquid is collected.
You want to get as much liquid as possible so that the sauce does not become to watery.
Leave the pasta to sit until it's time to add it to the sauce.

Now on to the rest of the dish!

Avocado and basil pesto

2.5 ripe avocados
2 cloves of garlic
2 small red chilli's
Juice from 1 lime
2 cups of fresh basil, loosely packed
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup almond milk

Combine all ingredients except almond milk in a food processor until well combined.

The texture should resemble a thick smooth paste.

Turkey meatballs

1 brown onion, finely chopped
1 small red chilli, finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
1 whole egg
Small handful of fresh chives chopped
2 tbs almond meal
500g turkey mince
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients well in a bowl - I find it easiest to use my hands :).
Roll the turkey mince into small balls.
This mixture makes approximately 25 small balls. Make them as small of large as you like.
Place the meatballs into a lightly oiled fry pan and fry on all sides on medium heat until cooked through - approx. 10 minutes.

Assembly

Place the sauce in a saucepan and add the zucchini pasta. Toss through the sauce and add the almond milk.
Simmer over low-medium heat with the lid in place for approx. 10 minutes to soften the pasta.

Once pasta is ready, serve onto separate plates or bowls and top with your desired number of meatballs!

Enjoy!