This quick and easy meal has it all! The shrimp provides a tasty source of lean protein, while the marinara sauce and shredded zucchini provide vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients.
This meal offers a rainbow of colors and can have even more if you add other shredded vegetables. The whole wheat pasta offers plenty of fiber; if you choose lentil pasta, you’ll get a plant-based protein boost!
Shredding the zucchini into familiar pasta sauce can make it more palatable for picky eaters, who might enjoy a food more when it is shredded or cut into a different shape than normal! Adding shredded vegetables is also a great way to boost the nutritional value of pasta sauce. Try out different shredded veggies to find your child(s) favorite addition!
Red Sauce Pasta with Shrimp and Zucchini
Ingredients
- ½ cup whole wheat or green lentil pasta shells*
- 2 oz. peeled and deveined shrimp uncooked or precooked frozen
- ½ cup marinara sauce
- ½ cup sautéed zucchini or shredded into the sauce
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions.
- While it’s cooking, add 2 oz. shrimp into a small saucepan with a bit of oil on medium heat.
- Cook shrimp until white and no longer translucent. If you buy pre-cooked frozen shrimp, heat it according to package instructions.
- Heat pasta sauce on medium heat until at desired temperature, about 3 minutes.
- Add grated zucchini (yellow squash and carrots also work well).
- Strain pasta and mix with sauce and shrimp.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Looking for more tasty meal ideas? Check out my other meal plans for all ages!
(1-2 servings grain, 2 oz. protein, 1 vegetable)
