Sometimes you just need a bowl of pasta.
Am I right?
I grew up loving Italian food (thanks to my dad who is full Italian). Lasagne, gnocchi, linguine with pesto, bread dipped in olive oil… those were a few of my favorite things. When I found out I had Celiac disease back in 2009, my first thought was “Italian food is loaded with gluten, what about my pasta?!” I’m not going to lie, the anxiety was real. Italian food was my soul food; so now what was I going to do?
It’s been 7 years now and since then I’ve learned to find suitable substitues for most of my favorite dishes. Whether it be zoodles with pesto or homemade marinara sauce, I have been able to satisfy my love for Italian food in a gluten-free, healthier way.
A few years ago I created a pasta dish that is simple but flavorful. I have yet to share it until now!
A little bit of garlic, a whole lot of flavor. Zucchini, tomatoes, and fresh basil are also part of this pasta dish.
You can use any brand of pasta that you want for this dish, but I used DeLallo gluten-free penne pasta. Another great brand that I like to use is Lundberg brown rice pastas.
And did I mention that this recipe is also pleasing to the eye?
Now I’ll share the recipe 🙂
- 1 lb./16 oz. gluten-free penne pasta
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 8 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 small (or 1 large) zucchini, chopped
- 1½ cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup fresh basil, chopped
- 1 tsp. Himalayan pink salt
- 1 tsp. black pepper
- Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Salt the water and add in the pasta. Let the pasta boil according to package directions or until al dente. Drain pasta and set aside.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, add in the olive oil and garlic. Sauté the garlic until it becomes fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add in the chopped zucchini and ½ teaspoon salt. Next add in the cherry tomatoes and sauté the veggies until the tomatoes blister.
- Pour your drained pasta into the skillet with the veggies and add in the rest of the salt, pepper, and fresh basil. Combine all the ingredients until the pasta is coated in the veggie mixture. Taste and add more salt and pepper as desired.
- Enjoy!
With joy and health,
