I am on a mission to use as many herbs from my garden in my recipes as possible before the first frost comes this year. One of my favourites this summer has been lemon balm. It just has the best lemony smell and a mild and refreshing lemon-scented and slightly minty taste which is great for teas, salads, pesto and refreshing drinks.

This bright and happy spaghetti recipe is made with fresh lemon balm, a little bit of garlic and lemon zest, pine nuts, parmesan, lots of olive oil, sea salt and some fried spiralled zucchinis which complement this dish so nicely without overpowering the delicious fresh lemon balm.

It’s a light and easy pasta dish that is quickly made by tossing hot cooked spaghetti and fried zucchini spirals in a fresh lemon balm pesto sauce. Make this delicious spaghetti dish with all the green goodness of lemon balm and serve it with freshly cracked black pepper and some parmesan on top or add some fried chicken, fish or shrimp if you’d like.

And if you love lemon balm just as much as I do and if you haven’t tried my ICED LEMON BALM LEMONADE RECIPE this summer, please make sure to check out that post as well.

TIPS TO MAKE THE PERFECT SPAGHETTI WITH LEMON BALM AND ZUCCHINI

Use freshly picked and tender lemon balm leaves and make sure to take out any hard stems.

You can add in a little bit of basil, parsley, arugula or mint to your pesto to deepen the flavour.

Make sure to cook your spaghetti al dente (firm to the bite) and don’t overcook them.

Go easy on the garlic and lemon zest in this recipe to avoid overpowering the delicate flavour of the lemon balm.

Save and add a little bit of pasta water to your spaghetti to make sure the pasta gets coated evenly.

Don’t heat the pesto and add it to the pasta after you turned off the heat to avoid it from changing its colour and fresh, delicate flavour.

INGREDIENTS

Spaghetti - use spaghetti, spaghettini or linguine for this recipe.

Zucchini - you can use green or yellow or a mix of both zucchini varieties.

Lemon balm - pick fresh and tender lemon balm to make the pesto.

Olive oil - use a good quality olive oil for this pasta dish.

Garlic - I recommend using fresh grated garlic in the lemon balm pesto.

Lemon - use freshly grated lemon zest and lemon juice for this recipe.

Pine nuts - you can use pine nuts or substitute with cashews or almonds.

Parmesan - I recommend using a good quality parmesan or grana padano for this pasta dish.

The full ingredient list with exact measurements can be found in the recipe card below.

MATERIALS

big pot
pasta strainer
vegetable spiralizer
fine metal grater or zester
medium-sized pan
small skillet
hand blender, food processor or mortar & pestle
cheese grater

INSTRUCTIONS STEP BY STEP

Prepare your zucchini by washing them, cutting off the small end and cutting them into long spirals using a spiralizer.

Bring a big pot of salt water to a boil and cook your spaghetti according to the instructions on the package. Reserve a ¼ cup of pasta water to add to your dish later.

Lightly toast your pine nuts over medium heat in a dry skillet for 3 minutes until golden and set aside to cool down.

Fry your zucchini spirals in some olive oil in your medium pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes and season them with salt and pepper.

Make the pesto by adding the pine nuts, garlic, parmesan, lemon balm, lemon zest, 1-2 tbsps lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper into your food processor, hand blender or mortar and pestle and blending it until you have a fine paste.

Combine and toss your hot pasta with the zucchini, some of the reserved pasta water, and the fresh lemon balm pesto.

Add freshly cracked pepper, grated parmesan and fresh lemon balm leaves to your dish, serve and enjoy!