Shaved Zucchini Salad with Cherry Tomatoes
Zucchini was my favorite vegetable on my healing journey. Mostly because it was so creamy and easy for me to digest. While I definitely overdid it on how much zucchini I ate in my 20’s and 30’s, I recently felt ready to dive back in and try new ways of serving it.
I used my y-shaped vegetable peeler (these are wonderful and so much better than the old veggie peelers) and shaved a few zucchini and yellow summer squash. No, it need not be summer to serve this recipe. Yellow summer squash tend to have less flavor than zucchini, in my opinion, so you’ll notice I’m only using one but they are in food stores year-round and can be served raw or cooked.
Tonight, I’m not cooking anything. I’m shaving and serving.
It’s pretty easy and quite refreshing whether you’re in the mood for a warm weather recipe or you need a break from heavy winter comfort foods.
I have this thing for cherry tomatoes. Especially the yellow and orange ones at the farmers market. O boy are they wonderful! If you can’t find them, don’t worry, you could use red grapes instead. They’d work just fine.
This shaved zucchini “salad” without lettuce can be assembled in a few minutes. You’re simply shaving the yellow squash and zucchini, tossing in some baby spinach and tomatoes and sealing it all together with a generous drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of sea salt. The pumpkin seeds are the final touch (don’t skip them). They add a little crunch but also a dose of healthy fat so you’re not starving in an hour.
Fresh basil fits best here but if you can’t find it, no worries. Tarragon and mint are equally as bright-tasting.
Enjoy.
Click the Play button below to hear me share a few helpful tips and walk you through the simple steps of making this shaved zucchini salad. Maybe, like me, you’ve had times when you’ve struggle to read through a recipe and follow the steps. All kinds of life circumstances–grief, trauma, stress—can tax our cognitive processing abilities, which is why I’ve created these audio clips to further support you now that I’m in this more healed place.
Shaved Zucchini Salad with Cherry Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 2 large zucchini
- 1 medium yellow summer squash
- extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 lime juiced
- 1 large garlic clove peeled and minced
- sea salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper or Aleppo pepper to taste
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- Handful fresh basil
- 1 Tablespoon pumpkin seeds
METHOD
- Peel the zucchini and yellow squash using a Y-shaped vegetable peeler (linked above). Set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk the olive oil, lime juice, garlic, sea salt and pepper. Season to taste.
- Assemble the zucchini and squash on a serving platter. Add the cherry tomatoes, basil and pumpkin seeds. Pour the garlic lime dressing over the vegetables. Serve immediately.
- Store leftovers in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
