Mediterranean Zucchini Noodle Pasta

This Mediterranean Zucchini Noodle pasta recipe doubles as either a main course or a side salad, you decide! Either way, it’s paleo and vegan, full of tangy, briny flavors, and comes complete with its own dressing!

If you are bored with your current vegetable situation, then it’s time to cross zucchini noodles with kalamata olives, pepperonchini peppers, red onion, and grape tomatoes. This combo also includes its own  homemade Mediterranean salad dressing, which totally takes “pasta night” up to ELEVEN.

And I don’t mean that flippantly. As I was face first in a bowl of this amazingness, I actually pondered how soon I could make this for a family get-together. Because I honestly want to make this for everyone, and I’m looking for all the excuses to do so. Especially since I woke up the next day dreaming about making another batch. I am all in for spicy, briny, tangy flavors. They are my jam.

The Spirited Quality Control team was also in fine form. They waited patiently for me to finish photographing this delectable dinner recipe. And just as soon as I wrapped up, we all dug in. Toodle and Twinkle loved it, while K-Hubs and I couldn’t get enough. Now have enough zucchinis in the house to legitimately eat this each day of the week if we so choose, which we totally DO. 

You can add this to your pasta night rotation, zhush up your salad game, or eat this as a straight up snack. In the end, you’ll just be glad you ate it. K-Hubs said it reminded him of Italian Crunchy Cauliflower Salad, which happens to be one of our most popular recipes on the blog. So there’s that for a recipe comparison.

MEDITERRANEAN ZUCCHINI NOODLES INGREDIENTS:

This Mediterranean Zucchini Noodle Pasta recipe doesn’t include artichokes. I’m picky about my artichokes, and I was in the mood for something different, so I added pepperonchini peppers instead. 

• Zucchinis. You can julienne the zucchinis, if you have a julienne slicer on hand. However, spiralizing them works best. It also gives you a thicker noodle, which works better with the dressing. For best results, place the noodles between napkins or paper towels to absorb excess moisture.
• Grape tomatoes, kalamata olives, pepperonchini peppers, and red onion. These ingredients put the Mediterranean in Mediterranean Zucchini Noodle Pasta. Slice them up and throw them in with the zucchini noodles.
• Olive oil, lemon juice, fresh garlic, oregano, parsley, and sea salt. These ingredients make up the salad dressing. I drizzle it over the pasta, and then almost fold the noodles over each other so the dressing covers all the ingredients without making them soggy. 

HOW TO MAKE MEDITERRANEAN ZUCCHINI NOODLES:

Below are instructions for Mediterranean Zucchini Noodle Pasta. It will serve one really big serving or easily divide into a large dinner for two. If you want to serve it as a side salad, then it will easily serve four people.

1. First, spiralize the zucchini. I use the thick cut blade for larger noodles. Lay the noodles in between napkins for about 5-10 minutes to soak up excess moisture. The napkins should be damp after a while.
2. As the zucchini noodles are drying, slice the other pasta ingredients including the tomatoes and red onion. Since this is an extremely briny recipe, I rinse the kalamata olives and shake excess juice from the pepperonchini peppers. Depending on the size of the kalamata olives and pepperonchini peppers, you may not need to slice them. Combine the zucchini noodles with the pasta ingredients. You can either stir them together or toss by hand. I prefer the latter.
3. In a small cup, combine the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, parsley, and sea salt. Stir vigorously to blend the ingredients and then drizzle it over the top of the zucchini noodles. Stir noodles carefully to evenly distribute the dressing without mashing them. Serve immediately. 

If you love Mediterranean flavors then you might also enjoy Paleo Greek Salad and Italian Crunchy Cauliflower Salad. In the meantime, if you need me, I’ll be the woman with her face in a bowl of Mediterranean noodles. Seriously, though, I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we have!

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