Corcoran Street Kitchen: Zucchini "Spaghetti"

This is a really fun side dish, but it would even make a great vegetarian main course for an easy weeknight dinner. I got the idea from my friend Amanda who loves to proudly show off her yummy-looking dinners in the form of Tupperware bound lunches at our office. When you slice the zucchini into thin strips to mimic spaghetti and load up the pan with lots of flavorful garlic you hardly miss the pasta. Especially on these hot nights when a giant pot of boiling water is just unthinkable. I have a big grape tomato plant in the garden and my squash and zucchini plants are pumping out veggies faster than I can pick them, so we will be eating this a lot all summer. We ate it as a main course for two the first night and used the leftovers as a side dish on day two. Worked perfectly.

Zucchini "Spaghetti" (serves 2-3)

Ingredients:
1 large zucchini or 2 medium
3 garlic cloves
1 cup grape tomatoes
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
8-10 basil leaves
salt and red pepper flakes
olive oil

1. Slice the zucchini into thin strips.

2. Coarsely chop the garlic and slice the tomatoes in half.

3. Add 2 Tbs. olive oil to a large pan and heat over medium high heat. Add zucchini and saute for 5 minutes until it begins to soften.
4. Add the tomatoes and garlic and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for another 5 minutes.