This Mushroom Zucchini Pasta is so velvety and delicious. The hearty mushrooms and zucchini toss into a cheesy pasta that's ready in less than 30 minutes for a quick and easy dinner!
One of my personal favorite ways to eat veggies is tossed into pasta. Well, maybe that's my favorite way to eat anything! I love pasta so much that I'm not sure I could even live without it.
I'm literally sitting here snacking on a bowl of pasta as I type. Maybe it's the variety of ways you can eat it, or the texture, or that it's always coated in a delicious sauce.
If you love pasta recipes like me, make sure to try my Pink Sauce Pasta, Pesto Tortellini Salad & Spicy Arrabiata Pasta.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe:
- It is creamy and delicious
- This recipe is perfect for a weeknight dinner and takes less than 30 minutes to make
- It's an excellent way to get in those veggies
- You can make it on a budget
Love Zucchini Recipes? Try my Zucchini Roll Ups and Parmesan Breaded Zucchini.
The Ingredients:
Baby Bella Mushrooms- Also known as Cremini Mushrooms, have a meaty, bold flavor that complements this creamy pasta really well.
Zucchini- One of my absolute favorite veggies to throw into pasta dishes. It's still Summer and zucchini is one of those vegetables that I find myself using all Summer long. They sauté so well with the mushrooms and provide another level of richness in this dish.
Butter, Cream and Parmesan Cheese- Combines to create a creamy, delicious sauce with just a hint of nutty flavor from the Parmesan Cheese. *Note: If you can spare the extra few dollars, spend it on upgrading the cheese to parmigiano reggiano. The same type of taste can't be replicated in a less expensive cheese. It is fantastic and an absolute staple in my household.
Olive Oil- For an Italian flavor and to sauté the mushrooms and zucchini.
Garlic & Salt and Pepper- For extra flavor.
Substitutions and Variations:
Want more veggies? Try adding in some thinly sliced celery, yellow squash, onion or baby spinach.
You can use different varieties of mushrooms for this recipe, just choose your favorite.
Any pasta works for this recipe. I like using a larger variety like spaghetti, penne, fusilli or rigatoni.
Like spicy? Add in ¼ teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes.
How to Make Creamy Mushroom Zucchini Pasta:
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Here are the Step by Step Instructions for this Zucchini Mushroom Pasta.
Step 1: Start by boiling a large pot of water to cook the pasta. Prepare the vegetables by dicing the mushrooms into small pieces. For the zucchini, remove the stems, cut into 4 equal pieces lengthwise and dice into small pieces.
Step 2: Once the water is boiling, add in the pasta and cook until al dente according to the package directions (or just a bit beyond al dente depending on how you like it cooked). *Be sure to reserve about ¼ cup of pasta water, just in case you need it to thin out the sauce.*
Step 3: Into a skillet over medium heat, add in the olive oil and allow it to heat up. Toss in the mushroom and zucchini, and salt and pepper. Sauté for 4 to 5 minutes until nicely softened. Add in the garlic and stir. Then, add in the butter.
Step 4: Once the butter melts, reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Pour in the heavy cream and stir. Toss in the cheese and stir again until almost completely melted.
Step 5: Add the drained pasta in and toss to coat it in the sauce. If you need to thin the sauce out at all, add a bit of the pasta water until it reaches the right consistency. You may not need any, and that's ok.
Step 6: Garnish with black pepper and parmesan cheese. Serve immediately & Enjoy!
Expert Tips:
- Adding a large pinch of salt and a drizzle of olive oil helps the pasta from sticking together. It also helps to flavor the pasta water when you are adding it in to thin out the cream sauce.
- Don't cut the zucchini in too large of wedges because it may not cook throughout. Try for about 1 inch cuts, after you split it into quarters.
For more quick and easy dinner recipes, check out this Sausage Gnocchi, Buffalo Chicken Quesadillas and Pasta and Peas.
Recipe FAQs:
Cremini mushrooms (baby bellas) or Portabellos will give you a rich, bolder taste and I prefer them in pasta recipes. This article titled "The 7 Best Mushrooms for Pasta" by Foods Guy gives an in depth breakdown on his favorite for pasta if you are interested in different flavor profiles. There are so many mushrooms to choose from!
Absolutely! Try my quick marinara sauce if you want to make an easy homemade version or feel free to use it from a jar.
No, you can use any of your favorite pasta in this recipe. Bucatini or Cavatappi would be beautiful in this dish.
Storage:
This pasta doesn't make the best leftovers because of the cream sauce. If you do have a lot leftover, store in a sealed container and save some of the pasta water in a separate container.
When you heat it up in the microwave or on the stovetop, you can toss in a little pasta water to help get it creamy again.
More Pasta Recipes You Will Love:
If you tried this Mushroom Zucchini Pasta Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you!
PrintRecipe
Mushroom Zucchini Pasta
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 3-4 servings 1x
Description
This Mushroom Zucchini Pasta is so velvety and delicious. The hearty mushrooms and zucchini toss into cheesy pasta in less than 30 minutes for a quick and easy dinner!
Ingredients
- 1 large zucchini, rinsed and dried, cut into 4 pieces lengthwise, then 1 inch dices (see photo above)
- 4 ounces of mushrooms (baby bella, cremini, or portabellos), about ½ a small package, caps only, rinsed and dried, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 8 ounces of pasta, whatever you like (I used spaghetti)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 cup parmigiano reggiano cheese, shredded (Plus ¼ cup for garnish-optional)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup reserved pasta water
Instructions
- Start by boiling enough water to cook the pasta.
- Next, cut the zucchini into 4 equal wedges. Dice up the zucchini and mushrooms.
- Mince the garlic and thinly shred the parmigiano reggiano cheese.
- Once the water is boiling, add in the pasta and cook until al dente (or just a bit beyond al dente depending on how you like it cooked), according to the package instructions. *Be sure to reserve about ¼ cup of pasta water, just in case you need it to thin out the sauce.*
- Into a skillet over medium heat, add in the olive oil. Allow it to heat up. Toss in the mushroom and zucchini, and salt and pepper. Sauté for 4 to 5 minutes until nicely softened.
- Add in the garlic and stir. Then, add in the butter.
- Once the butter melts, reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Pour in the heavy cream and stir. Toss in the cheese and stir again until almost completely melted.
- Add the pasta in and toss to coat it in the sauce. If you need to thin the sauce out at all, add a bit of the pasta water until it reaches the right consistency.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Adding a large pinch of salt and a drizzle of olive oil helps the pasta from sticking together. It also helps to flavor the pasta water when you are adding it in to thin out the cream sauce.
Don't cut the zucchini in too large of wedges because it may not cook throughout. Try for about 1 inch cuts, after you split it into quarters.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: dinner
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: mushroom zucchini pasta, zucchini mushroom pasta, courgette pasta, easy dinner, pasta recipes
Josie
Delish! It was rich and light all at the same time. Loved this one!
★★★★★