Oodles of Zoodles

About a month before our big wedding day, my childhood friends threw me a lovely bridal shower.

In high school, we were known as the "Fab 5." Katie (upper right corner) and her sweet mom threw the most wonderful bridal shower <3

The shower was filled with all the things I love- good company and conversation, tasty snacks, and lots of wine. Because no bridal shower would be complete without them, we played several semi-embarrassing games- and one really stood out.

Scattered on the dining room table were about a dozen “as seen on TV” kitchen gadgets. The game was to figure out what each one did- the winner would be the person with the most correct answers. Some of them were simple- who hasn’t seen the no hands garlic peeler commercial at 3am?- and some were more obscure (apparently I am the only person in the world who did not know what the Microwave Mama is). After the game, I got to take all of these gadgets home.

I immediately tried them all out, with various degrees of success/utility. The surprising standout though was the hand-held vegetable spiralizer. This item struck me as deeply silly and useless, and I could not have been more wrong. The spiralizer is easy to use and to clean and most importantly it makes eating vegetables much more interesting and delicious. I have tried this recipe several times with many different variations, each more delicious than the last.

The hand held spiralizer can be found at your local Target or Wal-Mart for around $4 and is well worth the investment. Don’t be afraid to try different tastes with this recipe- the possibilities of flavor combinations really are endless!

Pesto Zucchini Zoodles

Serves 1

• 1 large zucchini

• Half a fresh lemon

• 1 Tablespoon minced garlic

• 1 jar pesto of your choosing (I used Barilla Basil Pesto- but of course if you have time, make your own!)

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Coconut oil

Spoon 1 tablespoon of coconut oil into a pan over medium heat. Spiralize whole zucchini directly into the pan. Add salt and pepper and squeeze lemon juice over zoodles while they cook. After about 5 minutes, add garlic to the zoodles. Once garlic is lightly browned, add 1 heaping spoon-full of pesto to the pan. Cook until all ingredients are heated through. Serve in a bowl with your favorite crusty bread on the side. Bon appetit!