Many vegetables are easily noodled: Spaghetti squash, once cooked, inherently forms tender, thin strands you can twirl onto your dinner fork; zucchini, thinly sliced lengthwise, becomes long, wide ribbons; and, with the help of one of those “as seen on TV” spiral slicers, just about any root vegetable from beets to turnips can take the shape of pasta.
It’s a fun and practical way to shake up the usual vegetable routine. Raw vegetable noodles cook in minutes, thanks to their increased surface area. You can prep them a day in advance, so they make for an easy weeknight dish. You can’t go wrong simply sauteing them in a skillet with garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper. Add a handful of fresh herbs or a squeeze of lemon for an extra layer of aroma and flavor.
Or take the pasta concept more literally and toss cooked vegetable ribbons with tomato sauce or pesto. You also can combine generous amounts of vegetable “pasta” with regular noodles for a heaping main course that’s more healthfully balanced than the typical pasta dinner.
Asparagus is easily “pasta-fied” with a standard vegetable peeler. Here, inspired by of one of my most-craved spaghetti dishes, I toss the quickly cooked ribbons with garlicky toasted bread crumbs for a vegetable side dish that has decadent richness and unforgettable appeal.
Asparagus ‘pasta’ with garlicky bread crumbs
1piece whole-grain bread (1 1/2 ounces)
2medium cloves garlic, minced
2tablespoons olive oil
1/4teaspoon kosher salt
2bunches thick asparagus spears (about 1 1/2 pounds total)
1/8teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley
Make ahead: The asparagus may be prepped (before cooking) up to 1 day in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Tear the bread (including the crust) into pieces, letting them fall into a food processor. Pulse to form fine crumbs. Transfer to a medium skillet, along with the garlic and 1/2 tablespoon of the oil. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until the crumbs are browned and crisped a bit. Season with half of the salt; remove from the heat.
Cut off and reserve the asparagus tips. Hold an asparagus stem by its woody end; resting the stalk on top of a cutting board, use a vegetable peeler to peel the tender part of the stalk into long, thin strips. Discard the woody stem. Repeat with each asparagus stalk.
Heat the remaining 11/2 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the shaved asparagus and the tips; cook, stirring gently, until slightly wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and the remaining salt and the pepper.
Sprinkle with the crisped bread crumbs and the parsley; toss, and serve right away.
Makes 4 servings.
Nutrition 5/8 Per serving: 120 calories, 4g protein, 11g carbohydrates, 7g fat, 1g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 100mg sodium, 4g dietary fiber, 3g sugar.
Ellie Krieger’s most recent cookbook is “Weeknight Wonders: Delicious Healthy Dinners in 30 Minutes or Less” (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013). She blogs and offers a weekly newsletter at www.elliekrieger.com.
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