Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Hey, Zucchini Farmers!


It's that time again! The time when the residents of a certain small town lock their cars, not because they are afraid something will get stolen, but because their neighbors, who have a zucchini plant or two, will sneak a bag onto the front seat of any car that is left unattended!

Don't forget:
Zucchini Cheddar Breakfast Biscuits
Ratatouille
Grilled, marinated zucchini (below) for an Italian Antipasto plate
and best of all: Zapples!

A zapple is what you do with a big, woody zucchini that's too big for any of the other uses, except maybe ratatouille (the diameter of an apple), peeled, seeded, cut into thick slices, and stewed with cinnamon, lemon juice and sugar. I tell you true, you can bake zapples into a pie, strudel or tart, and no one will know the difference. Also makes lovely zapplesauce and zapplesauce muffins. All courtesy of Andrea Chesman's great book The Garden Fresh Vegetable Cookbook.

To grill zucchini, eggplant or radicchio for antipasto, cut into manageable slices (for zucchini and radicchio, quarters lengthwise usually work, eighths for larger specimens. Thick slices for eggplant, also lengthwise. Marinate in olive oil and balsamic with a sprinkle of salt, grill until just tender, then put the warm vegetables back into the marinade to come back to room temp before serving. Salt more or add fresh chopped garlic or herbs to taste if desired.

Mike and I made some delicious burritos the other day with barbecued chicken, grilled zucchini, sour cream, homemade salsa fresca, lime and cilantro. We were using up leftovers, so we were both pleasantly surprised by how delicious our healthy meal turned out.

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