These creamy, lemony zucchini noodles are low-carb, fun to make, and absolutely delicious for a light lunch or dinner!
Here’s something you may not know: For a few months, I’ve been eating pretty strictly low-carb meals and snacks. Yea, you may see some deliciously doughy, sugary and bready treats here on my blog once in a while, but having a “bite” or two (or three) is both keeping me sane and on track! I don’t eat the whole batch of brownies or bowl-full of pasta, as much as I want to. To be honest, I’ve never felt better and I’m not craving cakes, potatoes, pizza and donuts like I used to.
Well, okay… maybe the donut craving hasn’t subsided yet.
But, now for a little something that I didn’t even know until recently… low-carb living can be incredibly delicious! When I saw this recipe from my pal Jessica at The Novice Chef, I nearly fell out of my chair. Then I shared it with you in my August Links I Love post, and now I’m sharing it with you here because… well, zucchini noodles just can’t be shared enough!
That’s right, I said zucchini. noodles. It’s a thing. And it’s gonna knock your socks off!
With a julienne peeler or the julienne blade of a mandoline, you can make these thin, luscious little zucchini “noodles” just begging to be coated in a creamy lemon sauce. Next time I’m topping off my plate with cooked shrimp or grilled chicken!
These zucchini noodles would also be delicious mixed with pesto, tomato sauce, or even guacamole. Oh, the possibilities…
I couldn’t resist these savory noodles all smothered in a cream sauce with sweet summer tomatoes, but the flavor pairings are endless. If you want to really use your “noodle” (har. I crack myself up.) and get creative, here are some scrumptious ideas for zucchini noodles.
Personally, I think Jess hit it outta the park with a simple mixture of cream cheese, lemon, garlic and tomatoes to create a mouthwatering meal. That girl, I tell ya!
So, you’re wary of the texture and taste, right? I gotcha. The texture of cooked zucchini noodles is slippery and soft, with a slight chew. You really just want to “wilt” the zucchini until it can be twirled around your fork. Like so!
The taste? It’s no pasta, but it is really good. Since raw zucchini doesn’t have as much innate flavor as pasta, it needs a little boost, and these flavors really make it sing! Four small servings clock in at under 150 calories and 10 grams of carbs each, so have some garlic bread on the side if you’d like!
Try these tasty, low-carb zucchini noodles for dinner, or on the side of your next meal, and I guarantee you’ll agree that they’re a healthy and delicious change from the usual!
Creamy Lemon Zucchini Noodles with Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 oz. reduced-fat, Neufchatel or regular cream cheese
- 1 lemon, juiced
- Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 4 medium zucchini, ends trimmed and peeled with a julienne peeler into “noodles”
- 1 heaping cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, optional
Instructions
- In a large nonstick skillet set to medium heat, add olive oil. Once hot, add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add cream cheese and lemon juice, stirring until cream cheese has melted into a thick sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add zucchini noodles, tossing to coat in sauce, and cook for 4-5 minutes. Be careful not to overcook the zucchini noodles – They should be mostly soft but maintain a little crispness.
- Top with cherry tomatoes and sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan, if desired. Serve warm.
- Enjoy!
Lovve the flavors and your zucchini noodles look perfect. Somehow I don’t think I’d miss the carbs at all!
That is one beautiful noodle dish! Love the colours and it looks delicious :)
Yum this looks delicious! I bet the fact it looks like pasta helps to keep the craving satisfied really well
That creaminess – love it! I’ve never made zucchini noodles before but I’m SO excited to try it out – it’s right up my alley!
This looks way better than pasta! And that sauce looks so creamy and amazing that I would add it to everything… I need a bowl full of this right now ;)
This sounds soooo good!! Love this idea!
I’ve become quite entranced with zucchini noodles, especially since you can pair them with creamier, more indulgent sauces with no guilt! It’s a win/win for sure. Love this creamy lemon sauce!
I’ve actually never had zucchini noodles … but I feel like I’ve been missing out. Especially with this creamy lemon sauce! That sounds so good! Plus, I can’t get enough cherry tomatoes these days!
These look awesome, Georgia! Great alternative to pasta, and a perfect way to use up some of my end of summer zucchini!
Crazy-good recipe, Georgia! We low-carbers have been enjoying zucchini noodles and ribbons as well as spaghetti squash for years. Such a simple solution for replacing carb-loaded pasta. But, this sauce? it sounds divine! Lovely photography as always, m’lady. Pinning!
A very clever and delicious post…not to forget healthy too! It is an absolute winner and the pics look gorgeous. Great post!
This low-carb recipe looks delicious, Georgia! I’ve done something similar with spaghetti noodles, but never with zucchini. Love that you incorporated so many late summer veggies into this!
And I definitely need to scale back on my carbs a little. Since I started my baking blog, my sweets intake has gone WAY up. I need to work on it, haha. All that to say, I really appreciate the inspiration!
This is gorgeous and those creamy zucchini noodles are so my thing! can’t wait to make this one soon!
Love low-carb noodles…and it sounds so delicious with creamy sauce.
I love my carbs but know well enough that I can’t – and shouldn’t – indulge every craving. I’ve seen these zucchini noodles around the blogosphere but haven’t tried the myself yet. But with this creamy sauce and plump tomatoes, I want to spiral some zucchini tonight!
I have been wanting to try zucchini “noodles” but no recipe has made it seem appetizing to me–until now. I’m not sure I’d even MISS the pasta with this recipe!
I can attest to the deliciousness of zucchini noodles – I started doing it recently when I had it at a restaurant but I’ve always mixed in a bit of spaghetti. I’m sure it is wonderful with just the zucchini and you can pile it on! Now, this cream sauce?! I’m swooning!!
This looks delicious! I love the idea of zucchini noodles and have never tried them but this might finally get me to do so! :)
I love the idea of the zucchini taking a subtle role in this dish. It looks delicious. I think you have to allow yourself little bites when your watching your diet in some aspect. If you don’t, you’ll feel deprived and fall overboard.
This looks so good! I’ve always wanted to try zucchini noodles.
Love the sound of that creamy sauce! I really need to try zucchini noodles!
OK so I honestly have never really understood the zucchini noodle thing, mostly because they looked a little gross to me, but you are making them look SO. GOOD. That creamy sauce, are you kidding me? I may be a convert. :)
This looks absolutely delicious!
I’ve been wanting to try zucchini noodles for the longest time now! These look amazing!
You’re a genius. This low-carb pasta looks wonderful, and I love the sauce!
Stunning photos, and the dish looks absolutely delicious as well. I’m a huge zucchini lover, and all of those bright flavors with a creamy sauce to make it just indulgent enough is worth going out and buying a mandolin. I needed to do it, anyway, so thanks for a push in the right directions, Georgia!
I’d be tempted to swap cream cheese for part-skim ricotta … I think it would be lighter and more refreshing. Perhaps add some herbs to the ricotta. Just a thought since fat turns to sugar as well.
Definitely have to try zuchiini ribbons instead of pasta though … just need to get the Zyliss julienne grater!
Thanks for another great sounding recipe!
I have GOT to try this Georgia! I love zucchini so much and now need to make noodles out of them. :)
Ghosh, the creaminess and the way your dish looks, I can give up on my carbs. I’ve been wanting to make them for a while now and you just inspired me even more. Beautiful photography as always.
I’ve been thinking about this since I saw it on Jessica’s site. My problem – I can’t find my mandoline!! I haven’t used it since we moved and I cannot find it anywhere. This just reminded me to look around again!
We have a TON of zucchini growing right now. I need to make this soon. I’m all about creamy pasta and yours looks especially perfect, Georgia. Thank you so much for sharing yet another delicious post. I’m hungry now! I hope you are having a great Tuesday!
Wow, your zucchini noodles look so delicious :D
Tomatoes are wonderful!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
I’m attempting to cut pasta out of my diet for a month, so this recipe makes me insanely happy right now. :)
This pasta looks so comforting and creamy! I love finding different uses for zucchini.
Ok, this is the third time I’ve seen this pasta and so now, I must make it. Yours looks absolutely out of this world! I mean, those flavors. The colors. The deliciousness. Yes! Win!
I need ALL the zucchini recipes I can get Georgia. Love that this recipe takes a boatload!
Summery, scrumptious, and downright beautiful!! Great post, Georgia!! Thanks for sharing!
I really need to get on the zucchini noodle bandwagon! Gorgeous, Georgia!
Looks AMAZING and BEAUTIFUL presentation!
This dish seems to be not only tasty but also rather healthy. To make spaghetti out of zucchini is a nice way to make your kids to eat vegetables. Today I tried this recipe and my family really liked it!
Oh Georgia, this is so perfect…I am trying to keep it down too, although like you said bite or two (or three) is keeping me sane…I was just writing similar post!:))
Anyhow, this is delicious, and gorgeous! I simply love your vibrant pictures!
Do you think greek yogurt would taste as good instead of cream cheese? Cream cheese is a little to fattening for my liking
This looks insanely good!!
In the recipe I suggest using reduced-fat cream cheese. I wouldn’t suggest Greek yogurt as it wouldn’t thicken into a sauce.
That looks so perfectly delicious. I could eat it right off the screen. What beautiful colors.
I love zucchini noodles, they are so versatile and delicious, I make them all the time!
This looks truly fantastic. I have seen people use zucchini noodles before but I have never tried myself, I really need to. I will pin this recipe to make in the fall. Be careful with the low carb diet, carb are essential in the diet. As long as you are doing the good carbs you should be OK :-)
I adore the sound of these zucchini noodles! They look as if they would be great smothered in just about anything.
Bought 3 zucchinis this week (I love then and Marlin doesn’t care for them)… I’m torn between making this or your zucchini fries… trying, determined, and comitted to turning a non-zuccini lover around!!!!
You are so good at making EVERYTHING look amazing!!!
Haha, Kim! Make both! This recipe can be halved, and there you have one zucchini left to play with. Your boys would love the fries!
LOVE LOVE that you gave zucchini pasta the spotlight here! Lovely recipe, looks so yummy! I love zucchini pasta so much that I devoted a blog just to spiralizing! Love your blog, thanks for the post !!
Good for you about the low carb eating. I like to eat low carb when I can… but I love rice and that’s hard sometimes. I adore using these zucchini ribbons as pasta. I can certainly enjoy a big bowl of that. :)
Hmm! I was hesitant to make zucchini noodles because my kids probably notice it’s not regular pasta…(but I LOVE IT!!!). With this amazing creamy sauce, I don’t think they even care if it’s pasta or zucchini. This is such a family friendly recipe and love it Georgia!
this looks ridic!
such a great healthy option even with the cream cheese, at least there are barely any carbs, i’m so making this. bookmarking!!!
I’m kind of been eating low carb lately too, but not exactly by choice! I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes last week. I’ll be glad when this pregnancy i over :)
But, this looks beyond delicious!
Your photos are so gorgeous! Just come live in my goest bedroom and take all my photos for me please!
So glad you liked it! I’m pinning it!! :-)
This looks absolutely delish. I would like to try this out at the soonest time possible. I will also invite my friends over.
We just tried it. Loved it! Couldn’t tell the difference. 13 yoa boy loved it. He liked better than spaghetti squash. 9 yoa girl said she liked it and would want again but never wants to hurt my feelings. I salted the noodles to get rid of moisture. Next time more zucchini to sauce. Will make again and look forward to experimenting with other recipes and getting a better handle of it. Thanks. Very versatile. Next cauliflower sauce.
Made this last night and added fresh basil at the end for additional flavor. The taste was fantastic! One problem though—when I added the zoodles to the sauce (briefly), the heat from the pan made the zoodles sweat out a lot of liquid, watering down the sauce.
Is there anyway to prevent this from happening? The sauce was initially so creamy until that point and the end product was a watery mess (again, still flavorful and delicious though).
Help!
best one i found in a search today! making it tonite! can’t wait! thanks!