Roasted Poblano Pesto Zoodles {Low Carb}

Roasted Poblano Pesto Zoodles are a light, tasty take on pesto pasta, perfect for a spring or summer meal. A low carb, gluten-free, vegetarian dish to make for an easy weeknight dinner. There’s a vegan option, too! With arugula, poblano peppers, basil, and cilantro, this pesto has some zippy heat and incredible summery taste.

plate of zucchini noodles tossed with spicy roasted pepper pesto Low carb roasted poblano Pesto Zoodles - vegetarian #lowcarb #zucchini #pesto #vegetarian

Poblano pesto zoodles, OMG delicious and just pure genius! That roasted poblano pesto… I CAN’T EVEN BEGIN to describe my love.

You see, I’ve been on a fresh, light food kick for a few weeks now. Well, minus the barbecue gluten-free meatloaf. But I think it’s about time to shed some of that winter worry and get back to what matters – family, and good, fresh, healthy food. Am I right?

Maybe now that the husband is coming home I should try to lay off the cookie dough for a while. If you missed that confession, just check out my behind-the-scenes post on Instagram. Haha!

And just in time for all that light, fresh spring food comes my friend Jessica Merchant’s (How Sweet Eats) new cookbook, The Pretty Dish. Just from the cover, it’s stunning. I mean, WOW! Bright, beautiful, happy photography and totally DELICIOUS food!

The Pretty Dish cookbook cover

Of course, I went straight for the poblano pesto zoodles because I’m on a HUGE pesto kick. Um, just wait till next week and you’ll see why. Anyways, this sounded outrageously good and GAH, it sure delivered. With a little heat from the poblanos and an infusion of herby flavor from arugula, basil, and cilantro, it tasted fresh, summery, and a little zippy.

On a side note, this pesto zoodles recipes happens to be one of the most made recipes on Pretty Dish so far!

I don’t blame everyone for wanting to make this pesto zoodles dish. I’m keeping it on rotation all summer here at the Cotter household.

Now let’s talk more about Jessica’s book.

The Pretty Dish Cookbook

The Pretty Dish is one of those cookbooks full of healthy comfort foods. There’s a lot packed in, so you’ll always find something to make. By the way, that hummus is soooo amazing! Oatmeal station? Yup, Jessica’s on it. She’s also got a DIY beauty section, and I’m eyeing the face scrub recipe. Believe me, there’s MORE. The Pretty Dish has a little of everything you’d want in a cookbook. It’s FUN, pretty, and healthy – what more could you ask for?

roasted poblano pesto zoodles

And, just to encourage any pesto-haters, you’ll want to give this poblano pesto recipe a try. I have a friend who is a pesto-hater, seriously, and she totally fell in LOVE when I made her the pesto zoodles.

Just in case you like it when I get all nutritional nerdy on you, this pesto pasta is loaded with vitamin C and powerful antioxidants. So go make this AMAZING pesto, you will love it, too!

Ingredients in this Pesto Zoodles recipe:

Made with simple Ingredients you probably already have …

Poblano Peppers
Olive oil
Parmesan (Vegans sub with Nutritional Yeast)
Basil
Argula
Salt and pepper
Lemon
Garlic

Making roasted Poblano pesto in a food processor homemade spicy pesto in a food processor

Plus you can use it in more than just zoodles. Maybe poblano pesto potato salad should be made next. Thoughts? Um, yes!

vegetarian dinner of zucchini noodle pasta with spicy pesto sauce

Roasted Poblano Pesto Zoodles

★★★★★

5 from 9 reviews

Author: Lindsay Cotter
Prep Time: 5
Cook Time: 15
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 2

Print Recipe

Description

Roasted Poblano Pesto Zoodles are a light, tasty take on pesto pasta, perfect for a spring or summer meal. A low carb, gluten-free, vegetarian dish to make for an easy weeknight dinner.

Ingredients

Poblano Pesto:

2 poblano peppers
1/2 cup fresh arugula
1/2 cup fresh basil
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (Or Nutritional Yeast for Vegan option)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 tablespoon olive oil

Zoodles

2 medium zucchini squash
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Torn fresh basil, for topping
Grated Parmesan cheese, for topping (Nutritional Yeast for Vegan option)

Instructions

To Make the Poblano Pesto:

To roast the poblano peppers, preheat your oven’s broiler.
Remove the core and seeds from the peppers and slice into pieces. Lay the pieces on a baking sheet. Broil skin side up for about 10 minutes, or until the skins are completely charred and black. Broiling time can vary, so check every 2 minutes or so. Immediately remove the peppers from the oven and use kitchen tongs to quickly place them in a resealable plastic bag. Seal the bag and set aside for 20 to 30 minutes, or until softened.
Remove the peppers from the bag. Peel off and discard the skin. It’s okay if a little bit of char remains as it adds to the flavor.
In a food processor, combine the peppers, arugula, basil, cilantro, Parmesan, salt and black pepper. Process until the mixture is combined, then stream in the olive oil with the processor running.

To Make the Zoodles:

Spiralize the zucchini into noodles.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and butter over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute, then stir in the lemon juice. Add the zoodles and toss well to coat.
Cook, tossing often, for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the zoodles soften slightly. Add in the poblano pesto and toss well. Cook for 5 minutes, or until warmed.
Serve immediately with basil and Parmesan cheese (or nutritional yeast).

Notes

Vegan option: Replace the parmesan in the pesto with nutritional yeast

Tip: If you’re just getting into zucchini noodles, try combining them with gluten-free pasta. Use half regular gluten free pasta, half zucchini noodles, and toss. It’s a great way to incorporate more veggies and lighten up the meal.

Adapted from The Pretty Dish Cookbook