Pesto Zucchini Noodles with Shaved Asparagus and Shrimp

Pesto Zucchini Noodles with Shaved Asparagus and Shrimp

I keep getting asked by people, “So, what are you going to do about maternity...

Pesto Zucchini Noodles with Shaved Asparagus and Shrimp

I keep getting asked by people, “So, what are you going to do about maternity leave?”

“Maternity leave” is a funny and complicated concept when you run your own business.

While I haven’t decided on how much time I’m going to take off or how I’m going to work once the baby boy (!!) comes, I have thought about the content on this blog. I have some interesting twists I’m going to be adding in the future, but most importantly, I’m going to start re-photographing and sprucing up older posts to repurpose them/give them some love.

Let me explain why that’s a good thing!

When I first started Inspiralized, I had never truly written a proper recipe before. I didn’t even know that you are supposed to order the ingredients according to how they appear in the recipe’s instructions! Actually, today’s recipe is a recreation of the FIRST thing I ever posted on Inspiralized. Literally, my first post. Look. OMG and the caption was simply:

This isn’t necessarily a recipe I have worked on, it’s just something that seemed delicious to me, given what was in my fridge. It came out super deliciously, so I thought I’d share my pictures and recipes with you!

Pesto Zucchini Noodles with Shaved Asparagus and Shrimp

Since the start and since writing two New York Times best-selling cookbooks, I’ve learned how to write recipes better, create flavors better, and even, SPIRALIZE BETTER! So, I’ve decided to take some of my older recipes (which you may not have seen) and fix them up.

After all, they’re great recipes, it’s just that some of them are hard to look and some of the recipe instructions don’t make sense or involve outdated techniques that I’ve now found better techniques for.

I’m excited to go through these “oldies but goodies.” For instance, my Turkey Bolognese I posted last week was my Bikini Bolognese, just made quicker for the weeknight and photographed better. And I have to say, I’ve been loving seeing all of your tags of it on Instagram.

Pesto Zucchini Noodles with Shaved Asparagus and Shrimp

So, not sure what I’m going to do about maternity leave (I think it’s too early to think about that), but I do know that I’m going to be revamping some old recipes to post post-baby. Just so I don’t drive myself crazy trying to get everything in order before the baby comes and I “sign off.”

But you know I’d never sign off. I love this community too much, it makes me too happy!

Watch our video to learn how to spiralize a zucchini using the Inspiralizer and subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch more videos:

 

Nutritional Information & Recipe

Weight Watchers SmartPoints*: 10 points

*These points were calculated using the official Weight Watchers SmartPoints calculator. We are in no way affiliated with Weight Watchers, we are providing this information based on popular demand.

Pesto Zucchini Noodles with Shaved Asparagus and Shrimp

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 4 medium zucchini Blade D, noodles trimmed
  • 16 asparagus spears ends trimmed, shaved with a vegetable peeler
  • 1 pound medium shrimp deveined, shelled (or keep tails on)
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • salt and pepper
  • For the pesto or just use 1/3 cup favorite jarred pesto sauce
  • 3 packed cups of fresh basil leaves
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/3 cup of olive oil + more if needed
  • 1/4 cup pine nuts
  • 2 large cloves of garlic minced
  • ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

  • Place all of the ingredients for the pesto into a food processor and pulse until creamy, scraping down the sides as you go. If needed, add more olive oil until creamy.
  • Place the zucchini noodles and asparagus in a large mixing bowl and pour over with the pesto. Toss well to combine and set aside.
  • Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, place the shrimp, olive oil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a medium mixing bowl and toss well to combine.
  • Once pan is hot, add the seasoned shrimp and any oil drippings into the skillet. Let cook for 2 minutes, flip over, and cook another 2 minutes or until shrimp are opaque and c-shaped.
  • Give the zucchini noodle and asparagus mixture a toss and divide the pasta onto four plates. Top with shrimp and serve.

Recipe Notes

Per serving (1 out of 4) - Calories: 364, Fat: 25g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Carbs: 13g, Fiber: 5g, Sugars: 7g, Protein: 37g, Sodium: 577mg

Pesto Zucchini Noodles with Shaved Asparagus and Shrimp

with love, Ali

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Recipe Rating




comments

  • I ❤️ asparagus so much, I swear I could eat it at every meal! But I've never tried it shaved... is there any advantage to doing that vs. just cutting into small pieces?
    • Saved asparagus has a good flavor you won't find by leaving whole or simply cutting.
    • Yes, it's so nice just shaved! It softens with the pesto and has a great texture!
  • It appears that you leave the asparagus uncooked...it that correct?
    • Yes, it's so nice just shaved! It softens with the pesto and has a great texture!
    • It appears the zucchini is left uncooked as well. I think I'd sort of like to toss them in the pan for a minute to warm them up at least, but that's just me. I suppose it would be easy enough to try a bite of the noodles first, and then decide if you wanted to cook them a little.
  • so the asparagus is raw??
    • Yes, it's so nice just shaved! It softens with the pesto and has a great texture!
  • If you like. Otherwise a quick toss in a hot pan with a little olive oil.
  • I had never even heard of shaving asparagus until I started reading your blog. It truly is a wonderful thing! This post just reminded me that I need to do it more often. This looks perfect!
  • Is the zucchini mixture served cold and raw?
    • Raw! Just follow the instructions - if you need to cook something, it will indicate (like the shrimp!)
  • I love the flavor profiles and idea of this dish but don't like raw zucchini (love it sauteed or at least warm/hot), is there an alternate recommendation for preparation you could share?
  • Ali, do you have a favorite brand of pesto that you buy? Can you recommend one.
  • Well, Ali, if THIS oldie-but-goodie recipe is any indication, we're all in for a treat as you update others in your archives! Can't wait!
  • I still, still, STILL write recipes out of order - it's so habitual and I try to break it, ha! I love looking back at my old posts and see how far I've come with my photography...though I *would* love to update old recipe photos, by the same token. :-) I've looked back at this recipe before, because I was curious once to see where you started! I def want to make this, maybe subbing out the shrimp and adding MORE asparagus. I love shaved asparagus. Such an earthy spring-time flavor!
  • Could you use shrimp that is already cooked or should you buy fresh shrimp? If it's frozen should you let it thaw? I find in most recipes they never say if the shrimp is cooked or uncooked, so I'm afraid to try the recipe because I'm not sure what to do.
    • yes you could use frozen. Make sure it is thawed and dried. Instead of cooking just warm it quickly. You will miss the some of the flavor cooking the shrimp might add, but in general shouldn't be able to tell the difference.