Who doesn’t love a nice steaming bowl of spaghetti with meat sauce, or chicken alfredo, or a pan of lasagna. Okay, I’m drooling now…what’s my motivation again? Health, right! Step away from the pasta y’all! Have you seen how many carbs are in one serving? And y’all know you’re eating 2 servings at a time! Lets get moving on those low carb substitutes for pasta, stat!
LOW CARB PASTA
So, what do we love most about pasta? The toppings! Most of that yummy stuff is perfect for a low carb lifestyle! Meat sauce, alfredo sauce, meatballs…yum, yum, yum! I love all of those toppings, but I choose an alternative to the delectable, but evil, pasta. here we go with 5 low carb substitutes for pasta!
GREEN BEANS
Lets start this list with something a little unexpected, like green beans! I love to brown some hamburger meat (or ground turkey if thats how you roll), add a jar of my favorite marinara, then steam some green beans (with butter, oh yeah!). Add them all together and I have created a perfect low carb dinner.
Now, I don’t know about your husband and kids, but my husband, aka child #1, will not pass up pasta for green beans…neither will my kids. Your’s might, and that’s great! I’m just being real here. I make them regular ol pasta and I make the green beans for me.
Ive also topped my green beans with sloppy joe sauce while the family has sloppy joe sandwiches, yellow curry chicken thighs (my family won’t eat that, ha!), and just butter and parmesan cheese if I want something small.
Okay, that wasn’t so hard, was it? you’ve got to set yourself up for success if you want these changes to stick!
ZUCCHINI
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Anyone else always spell zucchini wrong? I think if my life depended on it, I might get it right! So zucchini…my fave! I buy a bunch of zucchini at least once a week.
I love it cut up and sautéed in an omelette, or as a simple side dish. But we get really fancy when we use a spiralizer and make zucchini noodles! I love this little contraption! Its super easy to use! You can spiralize all kinds of vegetables…Zucchini, butternut squash, bell pepper, acorn squash, yellow squash, etc. Pick up a vegetable at the grocery store and it can probably be spiraled. Except avocado, I don’t think that would work too well.
So you want some lasagna? I had the most delicious low carb lasagna the other day, and it was made with…zucchini! Don’t skimp on the gooey cheese with this lasagna or you might cry. To make the “noodles” you can use a mandolin or a sharp knife to cut your zucchini in a lasagna noodle shape. You want them to be about a quarter of an inch thick or less.
With all of these noodle recipes, you can peel the veggies, but I don’t. after your noodles are cut, you need to cook them for a bit. You can steam them in the microwave, steam them in a pan on the stove, or boil them in salted water. Make sure you watch them because if they overcook, they will turn to mush. You want them to still have a bite to them.
SPINACH
I’m going to throw you a curve ball right now, so don’t smack me. But what about spinach? I love to make some meatballs and red sauce and serve up a bowl with some spinach! Trust me here! Spinach isn’t just for salads anymore! You can also add some spinach to your spiralized noodle recipes to bulk up the veggie factor. You can cut your spinach into strips, add in some spiralized zucchini, black olives, pepperoni or salami, grated parmesan cheese, and your favorite low carb italian dressing…pastaless pasta salad!
SPAGHETTI SQUASH
Duh, right? Did you think I forgot about this one? I wanted to leave the most obvious for last. Honestly, I love spaghetti squash, but it is really not my favorite. It takes forever to steam in the microwave and i’m too lazy to cut it in half and bake it in the oven. Plus, the last time I tried, I just about cut my hand off! Maybe I should try one of those pumpkin carving knives to cut it open. They’re safe for kids, right?
Any who, I am itching to try this Cheesy Chili Spaghetti Squash Casserole, it looks amazing! Spaghetti squash is so versatile, I really should use it more often. How do you like to use it?
BONUS!
Have you heard of or tried shirataki noodles? They are similar in shape and size to regular pasta, and they come in a variety of shapes.
Judi Hayes says
I also like to sauté cabbage and use that as my “pasta”. Sometimes I add a bit of rice mixed in with the mostly cabbage.
jenniferbanz says
That’s a good idea!