Did you see that person waving to you out the window of the zoodle bandwagon that just passed by? Oh cool, yeah it was me - because I have officially hopped on it!

If you're not yet familiar with the magical world of zoodles - they are essentially long, noodle-shaped strings of zucchini - and they are AWESOME.

You do need a special tool called a spiralizer (or the knife skills of a master sushi chef) to create zoodles, but not to worry - I got mine via Amazon Prime on the cheap and it works juuust fine. There's also a more ambitious version here if you're feeling fancy.

If you're not a huge zucchini fan, don't fret! You can make noodles out of many other things i.e. squash (squoodles), carrots (coodles), cucumbers (cuoodles) - I'm just making up words at this point, but you catch my drift.I have loved pasta forever. I love the taste, I love the texture, I love the versatility of it - BUT I don't typically love the way I feel after I eat most pastas (overly full, tired, and bloated). I DO however love the way I feel after I eat zucchini (pleasantly full, energetic, and light) - and that, my friends, is my barometer as to whether the food I'm eating is serving my body or not. Plain and simple.This may be one of the most fun, subtle ways to squeeze even more veggies into your diet - and you trick your mind into thinking that you're diving into a saucy bowl of spaghetti. You get to swirl, slurp, and savor with every bite. YUM. Not to mention this entire dish takes about 10 min total to prepare.

The texture of zoodles is really close to pasta noodles, with a super satisfying crunch. SO GOOD. And you can make them in literally millions of ways.

Pick your favorite sauce and toppings and just make them already!

Trust me, I was a bit skeptical at first - but I'm so glad I gave these babies a try - total game changer.

For this iteration (I'm confident there are bound to be many more) I'm serving up a steaming bowl of zoodle shrimp scampi. Lemony, garlicy perfection.

Ingredients: (Organic as much as possible)

- 5 small zucchini (or 3-4 medium-sized zucchini)

- 10 wild caught shrimp, peeled + deveined

- 4 cloves garlic, chopped

- 1/4 cup dry white wine (or chicken/veggie broth)

- Juice of 1 lemon (about 2 tbsp)

- Handful of arugula or spinach

- 1 tbsp (pinch) of red pepper flakes

- 2 tbsp raw Parmesan cheese, grated

- 3 tbsp butter

- drizzle of olive oil

Directions:

- Melt butter in a pan over medium/high heat- Season shrimp with salt and pepper and place them in the pan

- Cook shrimp for about 2 min, and flip, let cook for another minute or two, add garlic, and then remove shrimp from the pan and set aside

- Deglaze the pan by adding the white wine (or broth), lemon juice, and red pepper flakes and let cook down for 1-2 min

- Add zoodles to pan along with arugula/spinach and cook until tender (but still slightly crisp) 2-3 min

- Add Parmesan, additional salt and pepper to taste, and shrimp and toss all ingredients together

- Sprinkle a little extra Parmesan and drizzle a bit of EVOO on top and enjoy!

Health Benefits:

Zucchini:

- High in antioxidants

- Supports eye health

- Regulates blood sugar levels

- Reduces inflammation

- Anti-microbial and anti-parasitic

- Supports prostate health

Garlic:

- Regulates blood pressure

- Reduces cholesterol and triglyceride levels

- Supports cardiovascular health

- Anti-inflammatory

- Reduces blood clots + blood vessel blockage

- High in antioxidants

- Anti-bacterial

- Anti-viral

- Anti-fungal

- Lowers risk of cancer

Shrimp:

- Anti-inflammatory

- High in antioxidants

- High in protein

- Beneficial to digestive tract

Zoodle Shrimp Scampi