I'm going to be telling you "about 2 cups" or "about 1 cup"... really, don't go by the measurements. If you have a small zucchini, then slice that up. If it's more than 2 cups, that's fine. Don't forget, these vegetables cook way down! I absolutely love the pasta that I used for this particular recipe! I found it at Walmart, it's Sam's Choice Italia Fusilli Corti Bucati. It cooks up a perfect al dente, and keeps its shape!