Raw zucchini pasta with raw marinara sauce
This weekend my family and I went to our first slow food potluck. If you are unfamiliar with the phrase slow food, it’s “an idea, a way of living and a way of eating. It is a global, grassroots movement with thousands of members around the world that links the pleasure of food with a commitment to community and the environment.” The goal of our slow food potluck, organized by my friend Melissa and hosted by my friend Alison, was to use as many local ingredients as possible. In addition to local foods, we also had local drinks including wine, beer, mead, cider and a few flavors of homemade kombucha. I will write more about the potluck and delicious foods everyone brought later.
After reading about and seeing a picture of a Meatless Monday meal – zucchini pasta and marinara Leslie at Recycle Your Day made recently, I knew that was the dish I wanted to make for the potluck. She sent me the link to the YouTube video (produced by Larry Cook at The Beginner’s Guide to Natural Living) where she got the idea. It’s a very simple meal to make – using zucchini, tomatoes, red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, basil, oregano, salt and pepper, as well as a vegetable peeler and a food processor – and it tastes delicious.
Because my garden isn’t producing much more than strawberries, cucumbers, and a few tomatoes at present, I went to the farmers’ market to get the bulk of my ingredients. I got the zucchini, tomatoes, and garlic there, had the spices at home, and got the peppers and sun-dried tomatoes at Vitamin Cottage.
I was happy to hear that everyone liked it, even those who were skeptical at first. Even my husband who’s not a big zucchini or tomato fan thought it was really good. (I’m holding him to that and planning on making it again!) :) What I found really interesting is that the pasta, which is just thinly sliced zucchini (I used my vegetable peeler to make ribbons), tastes so much like “real” pasta when you have a flavorful marinara all over it.
More on the rest of the slow foods potluck, including pics of all of the tasty dishes, later.
Related posts:
- Alison wrote her own post about our slow food potluck
- Abbie from Farmer’s Daughter is taking the Connecticut Grown Challenge to eat locally for a week. She has several helpful resources listed.
- Nature Deva wrote “what to do with all of your zucchini” – make raw zucchini hummus
- Tiffany at Nature Moms Blog wrote 24 reasons to gather at the dinner table again
- From Nature’s Harmony Farm blog comes Slow Food, Pro Food, Mo Food
- From the EcoScene blog, How to cook with seasonal, regional vegetables
- Chive Talkin’ is a flexitarian foodie with a raw twist who is always looking for flexitarian, vegetarian, raw, whole foods, seasonal, local, gluten free menu planners to join her Menu Plan Blog Roll.
- Over at Doodlebug’s Planet is a great post: Why Eat Local Foods
Have you written about eating local, slow foods or have a raw recipe to share? Include your link in the comments and I’ll link to you. :)
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