Daily Recipe: "Raw" Fettuccini with Pesto

Ok folks. I was officially a gluttonous fat-ass this weekend. I drank enough margaritas and ate enough red meat to sink myself into a tubby oblivion. Mondays always offer us a fresh start and as such, I am doing a veggie cleanse today. No, I am not doing a beet colonic. I'm simply eating veggies today. This recipe is an adaptation from a "raw" cooking class I took. "Raw" cooking only uses vegan ingredients (nothing that moos or can look at you). The food is never heated beyond 118 degrees so that none of the vital nutrients are lost. Blah, blah. As I sat in class mentally rolling my eyes, I was turned on to a few things. One of which was zucchini "pasta" which is actually just cute little strips of zucchini acting as pasta. It's refreshing, crisp, and satisfying. Now, let's not kid ourselves...it's not real pasta. But if you are craving a fresh sauce and something healthy to put it on, this will do the trick. A few notes: 1) This is not true vegan food because I am using real Parmesan in my sauce. 2) I skipped the garlic this time because I am allergic to my husband after he eats it. Ok, so let your freak flag fly and cook some raw food today!

"Raw" Fettuccine with Basil Pesto Sauce - serves 6

Ingredients:

• 4 whole raw zucchini, peeled


• 3 cloves garlic


• 4 cups fresh basil leaves, packed


• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese


• 1/2 cup good olive oil


• 1/2 cup pine nuts

Preparation:

In a food processor, combine the basil, garlic, and pine nuts - pulse a few times. Slowly add the olive oil in a steady stream while the food processor is on. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Then add in the Parmesan cheese and pulse again until blended. Add salt and pepper to taste. Now, for the zucchini. Cut off the ends of the zucchini and peel them. With the vegetable peeler, peel the zucchini lengthwise so you have long, thin, fat strips that should resemble fettuccine. Peel lenghwise until you see seeds and then turn it over and peel the other sides. Stop peeling when you see seeds. When you have a nice bowl of zucchini strips, dress it with the pesto and voila - fettuccine with pesto! Super healthy and delish.