Pesto Zucchini 'Noodles' with Poached Egg
and artichokes / bacon
There's no doubt that you'll get plenty of greens in this flavorful zucchini noodle dish that includes basil pesto and baby spinach. A poached egg on top creates a natural rich sauce as it blends with the pasta.
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Ingredients
Pesto Zucchini Noodles with Poached Egg:
- Bacon - 6 strips , chopped
- Lemons - 1 , wedges
- Artichoke hearts - 8 oz , chopped (look for these in jars, cans, or frozen)
- Zucchini - 1 lb , spiralized, peeled into strips, or cubed
- Eggs - 4
- Vinegar, red or white wine - 2 tsp
- Baby spinach - 4 oz
- Basil pesto (ingredients listed separately) - 1/2 cup
Basil Pesto:
- Pine nuts - 2 Tbsp (sub walnuts or pecans)
- Garlic - 1 clove , peeled
- Basil leaves, fresh - 1 1/2 oz
- Lemon juice - 2 tsp
- Oil, olive - 3 Tbsp
Prep
- Toast pine nuts - Toast nuts in a dry skillet or frying pan until fragrant and golden, 3 to 4 minutes. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Make pesto - (Double if making Wednesday’s meal.) Peel garlic cloves. Place nuts, garlic, basil leaves, and lemon juice in a food processor. Pulse until all ingredients are well chopped. With food processor running, drizzle in olive oil until smooth. (Add some additional olive oil if needed to help everything blend.) Season to taste with some salt and pepper. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Bacon - Chop bacon. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Lemons / Artichoke hearts - Slice lemons into wedges. If using jarred or canned artichokes, drain and rinse them; if using frozen, defrost. If artichokes hearts are in large pieces, roughly chop them. (Can be done up to 2 days ahead)
- Zucchini - Turn zucchini into 'noodles' with a spiralizer or peel off strips with a peeler. (Note: If you prefer, you can also just slice your zucchini to make a zucchini saute.) (Can be done 1 day ahead)
- Eggs - Crack each egg into a small ramekin or teacup. (This makes it easier to transfer the eggs to hot water quickly so that they cook evenly.)
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Make
- Fill a saute pan for eggs with water. Add vinegar and some salt. Bring water to a boil.
- While water is coming to a boil, heat a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and saute until bacon is crisp, 6 to 7 minutes. Transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. Drain off all but 1 Tbsp / 15 mL of bacon grease from the pan.
- Return pan to heat. Add artichoke hearts and spinach and saute until spinach is wilted. (To speed things up, you can cover the pan with a lid for a minute or two.)
- Add zucchini and saute until tender, 1 minute for zucchini noodles and 3 to 5 minutes for zucchini cubes.
- Stir pesto into zucchini noodles until evenly combined (remember to reserve half the pesto if doubled). Set zucchini noodles aside, covered to keep warm.
- Return to the boiling water for eggs. Reduce heat to bring the water to a low simmer. Gently tip each egg into simmering water so that none are touching. Simmer eggs to your desired degree of doneness (for cooked whites and soft yolks, this should take 4 to 5 minutes; remove one of the eggs and test it if needed).
- Use a slotted spoon to move cooked eggs to paper towel-lined plate.
- Divide zucchini noodles between serving plates and crumble bacon over top. Finish with a poached egg, seasoned with some salt and pepper. Serve with lemon wedges on the side. Enjoy!
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