Pasta with Zucchini, Roasted Garlic & Basil

This zucchini pasta is the weeknight dinner you’ve been looking for! Made with roasted garlic, fresh basil and a burst of lemon, it’s both delicious and easy to make. It’s vegan and optionally gluten-free, so everyone can enjoy it!

White wooden surface set with skillet, bunch of basil and bowl of roasted zucchini pasta.

Late summer is that time of year when folks tend to get bombarded with zucchini. Even if you’re a bit challenged in the home gardening department, chances are you know someone who isn’t, which means you’ll end up being the lucky recipient of more zucchini than you know what to do with.

I have a great way for you to use it up. In fact, this pasta dish is so delicious you might just find yourself hitting up your friends for more zucchini, because you’ll want to make it a again and again.

So if you get tired of zucchini bread, zucchini fritters, and zucchini soup, give this zucchini pasta a try. Or give it a try even if you don’t get tired of them — I mean, I never do!

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Ingredients You’ll Need

Zucchini. Okay, so the first ingredient is the obvious one. But, you can make this recipe using similar varieties of summer squash like crookneck or pattypan.
Olive oil. Olive oil is an important ingredient here, so it can’t really be omitted. Nor do I recommend substituting another oil. It’s the main ingredient in our sauce, where lots of the flavor comes from, and we’ll be roasting the zucchini and garlic in it.
Garlic. You’ll need an entire bulb of garlic. This may seem like a lot, but roasted garlic has a very mellow flavor, so don’t worry about it.
Orecchiette pasta. You can use another shape of pasta if you’d like. I find orecchiette works really well with the little bits of zucchini, but shells, penne, farfalle, spaghetti and capellini are also great choices.
Lemon juice. Use freshly squeezed lemon juice for the best flavor.
Lemon zest.
Salt & pepper.
Red pepper flakes. You can leave these out if you don’t like the added heat.
Fresh basil.

How It’s Made

The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you’d like to skip right to the recipe!

Roast the zucchini first. Place diced zucchini and olive oil into a roasting pan, or better, an oven safe skillet like the one I’m using. Pop it in the oven.

Garlic cloves and olive oil in a baking dish.

Roast your garlic. Peel the cloves and place them into an oven safe dish with olive oil. Stick that into the oven with the zucchini.

Tip: The garlic will need about ten minutes less time in the oven than the zucchini. So if you want them to come out of the oven at the same time (which is ideal), stick the garlic in the oven ten minutes after the zucchini. This gives you ten minutes to prep your garlic cloves while the zucchini starts roasting.

Boil your pasta according to the package directions while the zucchini and garlic roast together.

Roasted zucchini in a cast iron skillet.

Take your zucchini out of the oven when the pieces are tender and starting to brown in spots.

Roasted garlic and olive oil in a glass dish.

Take the garlic out of the oven when the cloves are golden brown. Hopefully this is around the same time as the zucchini, but if not, no biggie!

Tip: You should have plenty of time to prep your remaining ingredients while the zucchini and garlic roast — juice and zest your lemon, and chop your basil.

Skillet of roasted zucchini pasta with wooden spoon.

Toss your cooked pasta with the roasted garlic and zucchini, along with the lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and basil.

Leftovers & Storage

Leftover pasta with zucchini will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for about 4 days.

More Easy Pasta Recipes

Like this recipe? If so, please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you try it! Also be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes like this one!

Bowl of Pasta with Zucchini and Roasted Garlic with fork and spoon.

Pasta with Zucchini, Roasted Garlic & Basil

Ingredients

1
pound
zucchini
(about 2 medium zucchini), diced (½ inch)
3
tablespoons
olive oil,
divided
1
medium garlic bulb,
peeled and broken into cloves
10
ounces
dried orecchiette pasta
(or dried pasta of choice)
2
tablespoons
lemon juice
1
teaspoon
lemon zest
1
teaspoon
salt,
plus more to taste
¼
teaspoon
black pepper,
plus more to taste
¼
teaspoon
crushed red pepper flakes,
(optional) or to taste
1
cup
fresh basil leaves,
roughly chopped (about 1 medium bunch)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Place the zucchini and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil into an oven safe skillet or roasting pan. Toss to coat the zucchini with the oil and place the pan into the oven. Set the timer for 10 minutes.
While the zucchini roasts, place the garlic cloves and remaining olive oil into an oven safe baking dish. Toss to coat the garlic with the oil. Place the baking dish into the oven when the timer goes off (10 minutes after placing the zucchini in there).
Roast the zucchini and garlic together for about 20 minutes, until the zucchini is tender and browned in spots, and the garlic is golden brown. (Note 1)
While the garlic and zucchini roast, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain the pasta into a colander when done.
Toss the cooked pasta with the roasted zucchini and garlic, making sure to include the oil that they cooked in (Note 2). Add the lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and basil. Toss everything to combine.
Taste-test the pasta and adjust any seasonings to suit your taste.

Recipe Notes

The total roasting time will generally be about 20 minutes for the garlic and 30 minutes for the zucchini, but keep an eye on them, as this can vary. Small garlic cloves in particular might roast quicker. You can scoop individual cloves out of the dish if they’re different sizes and the small ones start to burn.
Usually the easiest way to do this is by transferring the pasta and garlic to the pan with the zucchini. Alternatively you can place everything in the pot that you cooked the pasta in.

Nutrition Facts

Pasta with Zucchini, Roasted Garlic & Basil

Amount Per Serving

Calories 389
Calories from Fat 107

% Daily Value*

Fat 11.9g18%

Saturated Fat 1.8g9%

Sodium 600mg25%

Potassium 524mg15%

Carbohydrates 60.3g20%

Fiber 3.9g16%

Sugar 4.2g5%