This delicious penne pasta with zucchini recipe has flavors that taste incredible together. Fresh garden zucchini and sweet grape tomatoes are cooked in with extra virgin olive oil and garlic and mixed with al dente penne pasta to make a comfort food dream in just twenty minutes! It’s an easy weeknight meal.
It’s an easy pasta recipe, that’s for sure.
When it’s zucchini season, you have so much zucchini you don’t know what to do with it. I have lots of zucchini recipes, both savory and sweet, to help you. One of my favorites is Zucchini Lasagna with Ground Beef.
Oh, the garlic flavor in this dish is amazing! Much of my cooking is done with EVOO and garlic. Let’s just say that I follow the Mediterranean diet which, you’ll find a lot of here.
So, if you like that, you’re in the right place! I especially love Italian cooking!
Easy Zucchini Penne Pasta with Shrimp Recipe
I just love pasta dishes. It’s comfort food, filling and budget friendly. There’s so much garlic in this shrimp and pasta dish, you may think you’re eating shrimp scampi pasta with zucchini and some tomatoes.
It’s so good and you don’t have to feel guilty because this is a dish that fits well in the Mediterranean diet. Drink it with a glass of vino!
This pasta with zucchini dish is a complete meal-in-one and it’s ready in no time! This is a great dish to make with leftover grilled zucchini or shrimp! I love that it’s healthy too. Quick, easy, tasty and healthy!
You’re gonna love these flavors! This 7-ingredient meal (plus salt & pepper) is easy-to-make with ingredients you probably already have on hand. I keep good quality frozen shrimp in my freezer so that I can pull it out to make a quick meal. It comes in handy in a pinch.
You can check out more 5-Ingredient Dinners which is great for vacation meal planning.
How to Make Garlic Shrimp & Zucchini Pasta
*The full recipe (printable) recipe is in the recipe card below.
Ingredients
- penne pasta ( or mostaccioli or ziti)
- zucchini, sliced rounds 1/8″ thick
- extra virgin olive oil
- cloves garlic, minced
- shrimp, peeled and deveined
- grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
- fresh or dried parsley (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste
- red pepper flakes (optional)
Instructions
- First, in a large pot, boil pasta according to package directions for al dente and drain pasta.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet on med/high heat, add olive oil and garlic. Cook for 30 seconds. Add sliced zucchini, cover and cook for 10 minutes or until soft.
- Next, add shrimp and tomatoes to zucchini and cook another 3-4 min or until shrimp turns orange. Add salt, pepper and parsley.
- Then, add cooked and drained pasta to zucchini and shrimp. Stir until combined.
NOTE: Make this easy pasta recipe a little creamy by reserving 1/2 cup of the starchy pasta water before draining the pasta and add it to the frying pan.
Garlic Shrimp and Zucchini Pasta is a 30 min meal worth adding to your dinner rotation. It’s so easy-to-make, flavorful and healthy! What a great way to use up your garden zucchini when it’s zucchini season this summer!
Make a hearty dish the whole family will love in just twenty minutes with this easy weeknight meal. It just may become a family favorite for your dinner table.
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I took this recipe to Weekend Potluck.
Garlic Shrimp & Zucchini Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 oz penne, mostaccioli or ziti pasta
- 2 cups zucchini, sliced in rounds 1/8" thick
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 lb peeled and deveined shrimp
- 1/2 cup grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 tbsp fresh parlsey (1/8 tsp dried parsley)
- salt and pepper to taste
- red pepper flakes (optional)
Instructions
- First, in a large pot, boil pasta according to package directions for al dente and drain pasta.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet on med/high heat, add olive oil and garlic. Cook for 30 seconds. Add sliced zucchini, cover and cook for 10 minutes or until soft.
- Next, add shrimp and tomatoes to zucchini and cook another 3-4 minutes or until shrimp turns orange. Add salt, pepper and parsley.
- Then, add cooked and drained pasta to the skillet with zucchini and shrimp and stir until combined.
Notes
Did You Make This Recipe?
If you made this recipe don’t forget to leave a review!
That sounds delicious Chris. Thanks for coming back and leaving a comment.
This was very good. I also changed it up a bit. I marinated the shrimp with a little olive oil and Italian seasoning for about 5 minutes. I added a little chicken broth to the zucchini when cooking it and added about two tablespoons of tomato paste in addition to the pasta water that was suggested. My husband loved it!
I’m glad you liked it. Thanks for leaving a comment.
I made this recipe but changed it up some. I added some extra ingredients and seasoning. I used coconut oil instead of the oil called for. I added 6 oz tomato sauce, 1/2 of squeezed lemon and 1/8 tsp Italian seasoning. Everything else was as the recipe called for. It was delicious.
Glad you liked it and thanks for the five-star rating!
Delicious, both my husband and I loved it