Caprese Zoodles with Basil Pesto

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New! I’ve added a cooking video to this page so you can see how easy it is to make this gluten-free Caprese Zoodles with Basil Pesto.

If you’re new to this website, as with all my recipes, there is a printable recipe with exact measurements and directions at the bottom of this page.

Hope you love it!

Update May 2020: This is one of the easiest and yummiest dinners ever and it was never so appreciated as this evening!

Dinner snuck up on us and we decided that the boys and my husband would have Bolognese sauce we had made earlier in the week (when in doubt, pasta, right?)…. so I made this for me!

It came together in no time and was so fresh and flavorful!

Roasted tomatoes are my favorite, especially this time of year when they aren’t super fresh yet.  And I could literally have eaten the pesto by the spoonful!

Hope you love it as much as we do!

Original post…

This is one of the easiest and yummiest dinners ever!

Roasted cherry tomatoes

Fresh mozzarella

Black olives

Zucchini noodles

all tossed with Basil Pesto.

That’s it!

A little chopping, 10 minutes of roasting, and a delicious dinner is served!

Of note… the recipe says 25 minutes but I usually roast the tomatoes while I make the pesto and zoodles so it’s more like 15 minutes!

Let’s start by talking about zoodles or zucchini noodles…

They are easy to make using a spiralizer.   We’ve used the Paderno, Amazon affiliate link, for several years now.

Alternatively, you could purchase them pre-spiralized at any number of store.

One question I am often asked is do I cook the zucchini noodles or eat them raw?

In this recipe, I prefer to toss the raw noodles with the pesto.

If you decide to saute the zucchini noodles, heat a touch of olive oil in a pan and only saute them for about 5 minutes or until they are tender crisp.

Options:

• If you aren’t sure about zoodles, you could make it with gluten-free spaghetti, or
• You could use a mix of zoodles and spaghetti noodles!

The only “cooking” involved is roasting tomatoes for 10 minutes.  This really brings out the flavor of the tomatoes and brings an element of warmth to the dish.

For the basil pesto, our favorite simple recipe is below (as well as a link to our favorite vegan nut-free pesto) or you can use a store bought one.

The basil pesto recipe shown here is made with 8 ingredients:

fresh basil

freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano

extra virgin olive oil

raw unsalted almonds

garlic cloves

rice wine vinegar

salt and pepper.

And it couldn’t be easier!

Using a food processor (we’ve had a basic Cuisanart – Amazon affiliate link forever and it’s great for this!), pulse the basil, garlic and almonds a few seconds to get them break down a bit.

It will smell amazing immediately! And the almonds give it a little texture which is so satisfying!

Then add the salt and pepper and pulse again.

Pro tip: Scrape down the sides to make sure it’s all blended well.

Next, add in the Parmesan cheese and with the food processor running stream in the oil.

Pulse in the rice wine vinegar (just a touch but adds a nice brightness!) and your done!

The pesto smells amazing and tastes even better! I could literally eat it by the spoonful!

I tend to make the pesto in the 10 minutes the tomatoes roast and then assemble so the dish comes together really quickly!

You could also make the pesto ahead of time.

And it’s sooooo delicious!

It tastes great all year round but it’s especially delicious in the Summer when the produce is so fresh.

Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

If you have extra pesto, try our Italian Roasted Veggie Quesadillas.

For more of our favorite zucchini recipes click here.

PIN it!

Scroll down for recipe and leave a comment if you try.