The Inspiralized Story

Inspiralized was started out of a pure passion for eating healthy and helping others. When...

Inspiralized was started out of a pure passion for eating healthy and helping others. When Ali discovered the spiralizer and quickly learned how easily it could be used to make creative, delicious and nutritious meals, she immediately looked online and was sad to find that there was no community or resources available for those who spiralize. Committed to spreading the word about spiralizing and sharing her recipes, she started Inspiralized.com, the definitive resource for cooking with a spiralizer.

how ali first discovered the spiralizer

My mother is a Type 1 diabetic. Actually, she had gestational diabetes, so she became diabetic while pregnant. Perhaps, subconsciously, this is a reason why I eat clean, healthy, whole foods and resist sweets as much as I can (although, I’m not perfect- I’ll admit!)

While trying to regulate her blood sugar levels in 2012, she started seeing a health coach once a week, in Hoboken, NJ. Actually, this coach was Lu’s old roommate! He suggested she try raw veganism to help. While my mother’s diabetes is Type 1 and not “curable,” a vegan diet lowers cholesterol and reduces your consumption of saturated fats, which ultimately helps control blood glucose levels.

She was about to go to Florida for the winter and he suggested a restaurant near their place in Singer Island. The restaurant was Christopher’s Kitchen in Palm Beach Gardens.

So, she went. Not knowing about zucchini noodles or the spiralizer, she ordered the “Dragon Bowl.”

Christopher's Kitchen

She was instantly obsessed (like we all are once we have zucchini noodles for the first time). She was so excited about the zucchini noodles and she told me about the dish right away. My first reaction? “Yea, yea that sounds cool, mom.” She wanted to recreate the zucchini noodles at home, but didn’t know how to. All she knew was that zucchini noodles were something special.

A few months later when she was back in NJ in 2013, we went to Pure Food and Wine in New York City, a raw organic restaurant. We had an incredible meal (I really suggest that restaurant if you live in NY – you’d never guess the food was raw!) and she was committed to eating more vegan and plant-based, so she bought their cookbook.

That’s when she discovered the spiralizer. One of the recipes in the book was for zucchini noodles and mentioned the spiralizer. Immediately, she ordered the spiralizer on Amazon. Once it came, she tried to recreate that Dragon Bowl at home. Like the first time she had spiralized veggies, she was hooked – they were delicious!

A couple more months went by and despite her insistence that I should try them (even my sister tried them and had the same reaction), I hadn’t given them a chance.

One Sunday night a few weeks later, I was visiting them at the house in NJ and she made me zucchini noodles. I was floored, incredulous, and fascinated. Most importantly, I regretted not trying it sooner! The consistency was unbelievably similar to the real deal. Always looking for new ways to eat healthy, I was totally impressed.

Literally, that night, I took the spiralizer from her and brought it back to my apartment. That Monday (the next evening), I made  Lu and I a simple tomato zucchini noodle pasta with artichokes, cannellini beans and shrimp for dinner.

His reaction was exactly the same as my mother’s, mine and my sister’s: absolutely stunned. He loved it! He put his fork down and jokingly said, “You should quit your job and build a community around this.”

Two months later, on June 25, 2013, after experimenting and having so much fun with the spiralizer and building up the courage, I quit my job and the next day, I started Inspiralized.com without a business plan, just a passion for spiralized cooking and a strong desire to help others learn to cook healthfully.

with love, Ali

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  • Ali, I have goosebumps from reading your story. One, because your enthusiasm is contagious. Second, I love that you quit your job and followed your passion -- always an inspiration when people live outside the box. Third, I am a mom and my daughter, Rachel Shanken of MindBodyWise.com, turned me onto the inspiralizer so here is another mother/daughter story. Rachel got my daughters law into it as well who now does home demonstrations. So, along with some of my friends, we have a little community where we email our own creative recipes and send photos of beautiful food. It's really a funny, flukey story about how we all bond around this little plastic machine!!!
  • How much has this diet improved your mother's blood sugar results? My daughter has Type 1 Diabetes as well so I'm very interested. No doubt she's very proud of you and Lu is certainly a visionary and encourager. Glad you're keeping him! ;D
    • Nice blog and article, thanks for sharing. However want to statement on few common issues, The website taste is great, the articles is in point of fact excellent.
  • Ali first let me say, i am soooo pleased to FINALLY find someone who is also obsessed with Spiralizing!!! Your blog is so uplifting and much appreciated! Congrats on your recent nuptials :) keep up all the fabulous work you do spreading the news about spiralizing!!
  • Hello Ali! I FINALLY got around to ordering a spiralizer after farting around with serrated peelers and mandolin slicers for a while, and I am so happy I did! I love your site, and your recipes, but I have also tried to search a little further and wider on the web, and guess what?! Almost all blogs, posts, and even magazine articles lead right back here, so kudos! I received it 3 days ago and so far have made a curried sweet potato noodle dish, quinoa bolognese and zucchini noodles, shoestring potatoes, and just finished the tomato balls (which I actually think I am might pair with parmesan and pepper zucchini noodles rather than tzatziki). I originally became very interested in spiralizing not because of diabetes, but IBS/Celiac's. To boot, I am also a vegetarian of 20 years, and on a pretty restrictive doctor prescribed diet called Low FODMAP, so my food choices are extremely limited! (No beans,mushrooms, avocado, mango, broccoli, cauliflower, milk, gluten, commercial tomato sauce, and on and on). I will have to play around with some of your recipes to fit the Low FODMAP (I don't plan on starting a blog about Vegetarian Low FODMAP Spiralizer recipes, but if the mood strikes you, feel free, wink wink), but generally I am just so excited to have so many healthy new recipes to eat, that I can't thank-you enough!
  • Great story! Can't wait to buy a spiralizer! I live right near Christopher's Kitchen and haven't been yet. I'll have to go have that dish. :)
    • I just wanted to add that I eat an autoimmune paleo diet for autoimmune issues, and the spiralizer is perfect for it!
  • I discovered the Inspiralizer on a recent trip to Memphis. I how have one, and my favorite dish is zucchini noodles with celery leaves, bell pepper, parsley, bay leaf, (and sometimes sautéed okra), tomatoes and basil. I add either shrimp or crawfish. Or maybe my favorite is sweet potato noodles with red onion and grated cheese, or maybe it is cabbage made into slaw with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It has provided a new (an innovative) way of eating. I have always made good choices, but these are the best! I tell all my friends about this wonderful new way to prepare the vegetables.
  • I recently gave the Inspiralizer and your cookbooks to my great niece Christina for her wedding gift. She and her husband are both in medical school, and he is a healthy gourmet cook. She sent me a picture of herself the first time she used it. They are having fun with it - thanks so much!!