Courgette & Carrot Spaghetti Recipe

Last updated on February 9th, 2024 at 03:58 pm

This is one of my favorite go to meals now for dinner after my summer long no junk challenge and losing over 16lbs now. You can see other recipes I have been cooking as part of my eating clean diet here. For this recipe, it’s great as I can alter it to fit my no carb diet and add things to it so it works for my husband and children. I hate cooking more than one meal for all of us so this is really versatile as most of my recipes are and I love making it as it gets the kids eating more vegetables they normally would. I swear you just have to say spaghetti and my two will eat anything in it.

It’s a really easy and fast recipe to make too which is a bonus on busy nights like after school swimming nights where there isn’t a lot of time between eating and bedtime by time we get home. It’s packed full of vegetables and nutrition. It’s just like making traditional spaghetti but without the sauce which is high in sugar if you don’t make it homemade. To get the kids eating more carrots and courgettes (zucchinis) I spiral them to look like spaghetti noodles. I love the flare the salsa gives it without making it too hot for the kids. I add chilli flakes to ours as the kids love spicy but if your kids don’t leave it out and use salt and pepper to taste. 

I am always in the look out for a good frypan too when I am making chilli or recipes like this one as so many of mine either stick or are not large or deep enough to handle all my ingredients I want to throw in. Let me tell you some nights a little bit of everything can be thrown in this dish. The Oxo Good Grips 24cm Frypan is the perfect size for this meal and a family of four. It’s deep enough for those over packed chilli recipes I love to make and wide enough to saute all the vegetables at once without having to constantly stir. There are five more reasons I love this pan just look below…Who doesn’t want a frypan that can do all that and be reliable when you are cooking up a storm in the kitchen. I am a huge fan of Oxo Good Grips products, that’s no secret here at LTM. Anything that makes cooking and baking easier, more efficient and helps make clean up a breeze. I am a busy working parent of course I love the help. 

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Courgette & Carrot Spaghetti

a healthier option on traditional spaghetti

Author Let's Talk Mommy

Ingredients

• 400 g Mince beef
• 1/2 onion diced
• 1/2 cup boiled quinoa
• 1 whole tomatoes diced
• 1/2 cup black beans
• 1/4 cup salsa
• 1 cup carrots spiraled
• 1 cup courgettes spiraled
• 1 Tbsp crushed chilli flakes
• 1/4 tsp cajun spice

Instructions

1. In a large frying pan, brown beef with onions, chilli flakes, cajun spice, tomatoes
2. Add blacks beans, salsa, carrots, courgettes and cook until tender
3. Add boiled quinoa, and stir
4. Serve over boiled pasta or eat as is for a healthy no carb option
5. Add a tsp salsa and cheese if preferred on top

Recipe Notes

I eat this with no pasta as it's filling enough and healthier that way with no carbs but my husband likes a more sturdy dinner and loves it over penne pasta with cheese as do the kids.

You can have this dish a variety of ways. Mr P loves it over penne pasta like above and my children love it on the penne pasta but loads with grated mozzarella and parmesan on top. I go for the no carb version and add another tablespoon of hot spicy salsa on top for a kick like below. Whatever way you love it, it’s a healthy dish that your family will find loving. The best thing about this recipe is you can use whatever kind of leftovers in the fridge too. Don’t have beef make it with leftover diced chicken or fish. You can use any kind of pasta angel hair is another favorite of my kids with the courgette and carrot spaghetti noodles mixed together. Omit the spices if your kids like a less spicy dish. Don’t have any pasta I have even mixed in scrambled eggs with this for a yummy omelette. Forget the black beans and try chickpeas instead. Trust me, this is a delicious recipe made this way but you will find you make it with whatever is in the cupboard.

We have been trying to branch out our family meals and really get the kids trying things they have never ate before or seen before and lately it’s really working as they get used to our cleaner eating lifestyle.

Do you like my recipe? Why not try it yourself and let me know on Twitter or Instagram what you thought? I would love to see your photos. Don’t have time to try it now, why not pin it to your Pinterest boards for later and share it on Facebook.

*I was sent this frypan for the purpose of this review but all opinions and recipe are my own.

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