Mediterranean Inspired Zoodles: An Easy Recipe

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Rediscovering America . The opinions and text are all mine.

Over the years, I have heard so many rave reviews of the Atlanta-based lunch restaurant, Aviva by Kameel. In fact, it has been on my restaurant list for quite some time, but I just never got around to visiting for some reason until now, and boy, have I been missing out. I loved it so much that Ian and I decided to create a fresh dish inspired by the recipe (see our Mediterranean-inspired zoodles recipe below).

Thankfully, I heard about Rediscovering America, which is an innovative culinary program aiming to showcase Walmart’s commitment to supporting local farmers, and making affordable, fresh produce to their customers. Nine celebrated chefs in nine cities across the U.S. are participating in Rediscovering America to create one-of-a-kind dishes using Walmart’s fresh, local, and organic produce, and Aviva by Kameel is one of those restaurants. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to visit for the first time! 

If you didn’t know it by now, Ian and I strive to find the most fresh, affordable, and LOCAL produce possible, but sometimes that can be challenging, especially while dining out. This is just one of the many reasons why I fell in love with Aviva by Kameel and their mission, as well as the entire Rediscovering America culinary program as a whole. Chef Kameel and his son, Nas, told us about how they used fresh and locally-grown produce from Walmart to create their several of their dishes. Quality ingredients are so important to them, in fact, they only use fresh, USA-bred meats, without any extra hormones or additives. 

Through the Rediscovering America program, Walmart is supplying Aviva by Kameel with red cabbage, organic zucchini, and organic Vidalia sweet onions to create the menu items: Swiss Chard Salad, Mmjadara, Vegetarian Gluten Free Pasta, and Sweet Sautéed Cabbage. When my sister and I visited for lunch, we tried the Mmjadara, Vegetarian Gluten Free Pasta, and Sweet Sautéed Cabbage, as well as a ton of other fantastic dishes. Everything was phenomenal, but our absolute favorite item was the pasta. I cannot even begin to describe how good it was! Amazing. 

When you bite into any of their dishes, you will taste the difference. Everything was insanely fresh, high-quality, and just simply amazing. I now understand why they have such amazing reviews across the board – they truly do provide the best lunch (or early dinner) in the Atlanta area. If you have not tried Aviva by Kameel, I highly recommend running there right now. You will be greeted with a huge smile, free samples, and fresh, wholesome food. When you leave, you will feel so happy not only from the food, but from the people, as well. The Srouji family and the rest of the staff at Aviva by Kameel definitely make your lunch experience an amazing one and you can definitely tell that they care so, so much about their customers and the dishes that they are creating.

When I got home, I told Ian all about my lunch experience and how I was so inspired by the dishes that I tried at Aviva by Kameel. We decided that we wanted to try to eat as healthy as possible for the rest of the week and make a meal that reminded me of the vegetarian, gluten-free pasta that I tried, so we picked up some local (and super fresh) organic zucchini from Walmart and made Mediterranean-inspired zoodles for dinner a few nights ago. You can also order groceries from Walmart for pickup through their online grocery pickup.

Holy cow, y’all – this dish was not only so tasty, but it was so easy to make because it does not require any cooking whatsoever (unless you prefer your zoodles warm!). You are definitely going to want to make this one and when you do, don’t forget to head to your local Walmart to find fresh and locally-grown produce. Here is the recipe:

Sounds good, right? I hope you love it as much as we do. Let me know if you try it out!