I’m really excited about a new trend that everyone’s talking about: spiralizing! The spiralizer could be the new Vitamix, and if you’re someone who loves healthy food you should definitely experiment with it – it might become your new favorite tool. 

A spiralizer is really a vegetable processor that turns out pasta-like ribbons of zucchini, carrots, or anything else you can think of to pass through it. Although it might seem like a simple tool, the spiralizer is life-changing tool for health fanatics, especially those who have gluten-intolerance or celiac disease. 

The most popular spiralizer recipes involve substituting pasta for spiralized zucchini, creating a satisfying dish that works for almost every diet, allergy, and restriction. 

If you're on a low-carb, gluten-free, or Paleo diet, the spiralizer is really helpful in making satisfying dishes without grains. It’s also great for summertime, since people are usually eating seasonally and naturally choosing lighter dishes. 

Spiralizers range from very small to near your beloved Vitamix in size, and most fall around $40, though you can get a small one for as little as $14.95, if you’re on a budget or tight on space. 

I use the Paderno spiralizer at home – it’s $49.95 and is very easy to use. It’s compact, I can clean it easily, and bonus: It’s BPA free. Something really cool about it is that it can be adjusted for right and left-handed people. Isn’t that awesome? 

Spiralizers can help a lot with boring kitchen tasks like chopping vegetables, and the result is much more visually appealing. Next time you want to make a raw vegetable salad, try passing everything through the spiralizer and you’ll end up with a beautiful creation that tastes great and is fun to eat. 

Here are five reasons spiralizers are awesome:  

1. Great for kids. The spiralizer makes vegetables fun. Rather than trying to force your kids to eat big hunks of vegetables, give them with a fun spiralized dish to inspire them to experiment with new foods. Add their favorite sauce and toppings and they’ll barely notice that it’s not a bowl of butter and cheese-laden white pasta. 
2. The perfect pasta substitute. If you can’t eat gluten or grains, spiralized vegetables are the perfect base for your favorite sauces, vegetables, and proteins. I won’t pretend that strands of zucchini taste like pasta, but they’re a delicious base on their own, pasta aside.
3. Makes nutrients more bio-available. When spiralized, the nutrients in vegetables become more available to the body and absorbable since more surface area is exposed. That’s pretty amazing.
4. Paleo-friendly. Zucchini noodles are the perfect paleo version of pasta, ready for a fantastic meat sauce or seafood.
5. Ideal for summertime. Most people eat less starch and more vegetables and fruits during the summertime, and the spiralizer is an ideal way to get them into your body in a delicious way. Bring a zucchini noodle salad to your next picnic and enjoy feeling nourished and light in the sunshine. 

More often than not, eating less meat, milk, and artificial, chemicalized junk food and more fruits and vegetables solves most health problems.

Food changes everything, and the spiralizer is a big step in the right direction. 

Have you ever had a spiralized dish or used a spiralizer yourself? If so, how has it changed the way you view and eat vegetables? If not, are you going to try it? Why or why not? Share in the comments below – I can’t wait to hear from you! 

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