This post is from my student, Sydney. As part of my Foods IV class’s final exam, students created their own recipes, complete with pictures and a compelling blog post. Here is Sydney’s project. I hope you enjoy her California Veggie Noodle Bowl recipe! 🙂 It is AMAZING and a fun way to eat a large variety of vegetables. I encourage you to try it.
California Veggie Noodle Bowl Recipe…
Oh, come on! Not another boring veggie dish. How many ways are there to cook vegetables? I admit that I have had this response to many recipes before and this is because after awhile they all start to look, and taste, the same. If you’re like me and love veggies I have the perfect recipe for you right here. And if you don’t like veggies, then maybe this dish will expand your horizons a bit. Â
Over the years, vegetarian and options have increased infinitely. However, sometimes it feels like you still see the same type of recipes day after day. The dish that I have for you today is something a little different. It’s not your traditional “veggie” dish. There are so many different components and flavors that go into this one dish that makes it seem like you have discovered a whole different food group.
This recipe is the California Veggie Noodle Bowl. It is a simple and, somewhat, quick recipe to make. It does require some chopping and cooking skills; however, it is well worth the work. It contains no meat, which makes for a great vegetarian and even vegan option. However, you could always replace the mushrooms in the dish with chicken, shrimp, or another meat to make it to your liking. There is a little secret about this recipe that I haven’t yet mentioned. Even though this supposed to be a noodle bowl, there are no noodles at all! The noodles are made out of thin strips of zucchini. This isn’t necessarily a huge nutritional change from actual noodles, but I enjoy the texture and taste of zucchini noodles or zoodles for short.
This dish is perfect for a summer night because it is a fresh, yet savory meal that you can use all your summer produce in. The basil and avocado complement each other, and all the other flavors in this dish, extremely well. The textures are very interesting as well. The crunch of the corn plays off of the soft zoodles and mushrooms. This is one of my favorite recipes because it combines all the veggies I love! And it is a very versatile recipe because you can experiment with different veggies, flavors, and textures to create your own version of this dish. Enjoy!
California Veggie Noodle Bowl: Vegetable Perfection!
Ingredients
- 1 medium size zucchini, sliced
- 1 package of baby bella mushrooms, washed and sliced
- 10 - 12 cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 can of corn, rinsed and drained
- 1 green, red, or yellow pepper
- 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil
- Handful of basil
- 1-2 tablespoons butter
- 1 ripe avocado
- Arugula
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat a skillet to medium high and add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil along with a clove of minced garlic. While the skillet is heating, we are going to make our noodles. Take a potato peeler and peel the zucchini into long strips (using the skin is optional). Once that is done, line up all of the strips on top of one another and use a knife to cut them into smaller strips resembling noodles. Put your zucchini noodles into the pan and start to cook them until soft. While cooking, cut up the mushrooms and tomatoes and add into the pan to soften. I enjoy the mushrooms in this dish because it acts like a meat. After your veggies are soft enough add in some basil and salt/pepper to taste. And the noodle portion of your meal is complete!
- Next, add your corn into a skillet with oil and garlic and begin to roast, stirring occasionally. This could take anywhere from 15-30 minutes depending on the dryness of the corn. Since the corn does not take much attention, you can begin to make the other components of the dish.
- The bell pepper can be cut up into squares or slices. Cook them in a pan with olive oil for a little while until they still have a bit of crunch, but are slightly roasted.
- The sauce for our dish is an avocado spread. Simple take your avocado and mash it. Add salt/pepper, lime juice, and some cut up basil.
- Once everything is done cooking, place the noodles, corn, bell pepper, and avocado spread in a bowl.
- I prefer to put them in their own separate spaces because it looks very nice and neat. Sprinkle a little basil on top of everything, and there you go! Your noodle bowl is complete.
 I very much enjoy this recipe Sydney created! I absolutely love how the different vegetables work together to create a satisfying, light, meal. If you are looking for a tool to make your own zoodles, I would recommend this Zoodle Slicer. It is what I use, it’s super-simple, and doesn’t take up much kitchen space.
