I have used zucchini to make pickles instead of cucumbers. I use whichever is easier or cheaper to get my hands on.
We like Surprising Zucchini Salad.
Grilled Zucchini (like filets, my husband says). And grilled zucchini in ratatouille.
I made a list of recipes that we like that use shredded zucchini. I put it in the front of my supper notebook, and then I shred and freeze zucchini in the amounts of the recipes. The list becomes a handy reminder in the winter when I come across a jar of shredded zucchini in the freezer and stare at it blankly.
The list:
1. zucchini cookies from Simply in Season - there are lots of zucchini cookies out there; these have raisins, walnuts, and spice in them
2. zucchini-crusted pizza from Moosewood
3. zucchini yeast rolls from Simply in Season
4. A shredded zucchini brownie that is delicious and economical: Frosted Zucchini Brownies.
5. Tasty vegetarian crab cakes.
6. And these delicious cornmeal cookies from Martha Stewart.
The photos are of my zucchini experiment: fermented zucchini "slaw." Got the idea from Rebecca and she has since told me it was too strange to be edible. Oh rats. UPDATED: See Rebecca's comment in the comments section. I rushed down to the basement and found that my zucchini was perfectly fermented and delicious! I immediately put it in the fridge to slow down any tendency towards algae-texture.
Can you help a sister out with any other zucchini ideas?
18 comments:
I don't know whether to be glad or disappointed - I have been meaning to make that fermented zucchini for ages, and didn't get to it yet. Now, I guess I'm not.
Well, now wait. I don't think the problem is fermented zucchini, per se. I think I just left it fermenting on the warm counter longer than I should have given the inherently soft nature of zucchini. I was mistakenly thinking "cabbage" when I estimated times. The fermented zucchini tasted fine. Typical fermented fare. The texture was just unfortunately related to algae. And I think that's an over-fermenting problem. So, quick! Go check your jar!
I have recipes for cream of zucchini soup and zucchini relish; if anyone is interested I can provide the details. We don't have a "source" for zucchini now that my father no longer gardens, so I am reduced to buying them at two dollars a pound!! Margo, you've got a good variety of recipes here and a great way to deal with using up the prepped zukes from the freezer. Organization is key, for sure.
I've made relish using zucchini (also green tomatoes, for that end of season glut ).
We love zucchini bread. I think my mom uses a recipe from an old PA grange cookbook; I use the recipe from the B&H cookbook. Chocolate chips are a great addition. The bread freezes well
:( for some reason my phone freezes mid comment and won't let me continue...
Anyway, I've also had a good zucchini caserole, which I think was just chunks of zucchini, a little butter and mayonnaise, breadcrumbs and cheese. Prob some seasoning as well, but it was mild.
Zucchini chocolate cake is so moist. And the prudent homemaker has a zucchini/potato pancake recipe that looks very tasty.
use them as you would a twice baked potato,i add bread crumbs cheese and herbs..mix in a meatloaf or any other meat dish you need to stretch..an egg and potato or carrot fritata is great too
I have a good zucchini relish recipe! Also, can you post your recipe for zucchini pickles, please? :-)) Thank you. Recently found your blog and have enjoyed it!
these are all great ideas!
Jenny_o, please do post the cream of zucchini soup - don't think I've seen that around and it sounds good.
Ann, I simply used a cucumber pickle recipe, but subbed in zucchini. I did it for bread-and-butter pickles. Glad you're reading along!
Sure thing. As with most soups, it's only a starting point. I like more onion in mine, and no tarragon. But this is the original version.
Cream of Zucchini Soup:
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp chopped onion
1 Tbsp chopped carrot
2 c. sliced zucchini
2 c. chicken broth
1/4 to 1 tsp tarragon
1/4 tsp garlic
1/2 tsp salt
2 c. milk
Method: Saute onion, carrot and zucchini in butter. Add chicken broth, seasonings and milk. Cook for 10 minutes or until vegs are tender. Puree. Serve garnished with paprika or thin zucchini slices.
I make a stir fry with zucchini and ground beef. It's very simple - zucchini, ground beef, onion, garlic, and a few TBS of soy sauce with a bit of sugar added to it. We like it a lot.
We like it in cupcakes - think spice cake/carrot cake - with caramel icing. I like it in lasagna, in place of noodles.
I got a great recipe for zucchini butter from, I think, TheKitchn. It's just grated zucchini cooked down in butter with some garlic until it caramelizes. It reduces amazingly and tastes butter than anything made from just zucchini should taste. Very luxurious. I'm going to make and freeze a lot of it this year.
YES! This is exactly what I need! Your idea about putting the list of zucchini recipes in the supper notebook is so smart!
The cream of zucchini soup sounds really good and reminds me of a soup I made when my babies were babies--zukes, potatoes, onions, all pureed nicely together with some other stuff (a bit of butter, some milk).
I was excited to see the zucchini-crusted pizza idea! It has only a smidge of flour so I think I can de-glutenize it with success. I also think I can use a version of the lemon-zuke cookies & brownies....& the crab cakes look great too. I love anything frittery.
I love to roast my summer squash with chopped onion and maybe a sweet potato, then serve it over oven-baked rice with a bit of shredded cheese on top. I was eating leftovers of this the other day and was enthusing over it! Delicious!
Oh, thank you, dear Margo. This is just what I needed to breathe new life into my zucchini-laden kitchen. You've just saved Naomi from a midnight-drop-zucchini-off-on-the-doorstep-and-run incident......
Also, pickles? Can you tell a difference? I am intrigued by this--not for this year, but for next!
Polly, re: pickles. I think it can be tricky to keep cucumbers crisp in a canned pickle. The zucchini stayed firm and crisp, no problem. I thought it was a great substitute. A traditionalist in my extended family did not like the zucchini pickles because they were zucchini, but she was the exception.
My favourite courgette (zucchini) soup is really simple and uses a lot of zucchini...
Grate lots of courgette/zucchini and cook slowly in butter (add a bit of oil if you like, but you really need the butter flavour, I think) with some salt. The liquid will come out of the vegetable. When it's soft, puree (I use my stick blender) and season to taste with pepper, nutmeg and more salt if you need it. Nothing else. It doesn't need stock or milk and don't be tempted to add garlic, onion or herbs. I've tried fancifying it, and it was definitely best with just salt, pepper and nutmeg.
It tastes as though it has added cream and even my zucchini-phobic husband loves it. (He thinks they taste of nothing and 'courgette?' in our house is duly a synonym for 'what's the point?')
We've been known to enjoy a zucchini "fillet" on the grill, too. :) One of our professors just delivered a fresh loaf of zucchini bread to the library as well. Tis the season for all things zucchini!
Haha~I had a big zucchini in my car to give you at church on Sunday, good thing I forgot. And now I have some ideas of what to do with our over abundance of zucchini, thanks for your great list. We like the zucchini chowder from Simply in Season cookbook, I add cooked chicken pieces to it for my meat loving boys. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle also has a good zucchini cookie recipe.
Thank you for the reply on my request for the pickle recipe. I WILL be making them! :-))
Post a Comment