Seasonal Foods: Zucchini

Zucchini (or courgettes as they call them here in merry England) are abundant this time of year. These vegetables are easy to go grow and can get HUGE if not picked early.

Word to wise shoppers: the smaller, younger zucchini have more flavor. Look for firm, heavy zucchini with bright glossy skin.

If you’re trying to cut down on calories, zucchini is a great food to add to your veggie table. They have a high water content (>95%) and so are very low in calories. Zucchini is also a source of folate, potassium, and vitamins A and C.

What to do with all this zucchini? eattheseasons has a sad-but-true observation:

In cafés and simple restaurants across the UK, courgettes are frequently (mis)used to make a poor excuse of a ratatouille or the sort of unappetizing vegetable ‘lasagne’ only ever eaten by desperate vegetarians with no other menu choice.

It’s so true (same can be said of risotto and goat’s cheese, the two other mainstays of vegetarian dining in Britain). But zucchini doesn’t have to be boring. Here are a few tasty ideas for tackling the zucchini glut:

Stuff em

Take a zucchini, scoop out the seeds, stuff with your favorite ingredients, and bake it til it’s done. Easy.

Need some stuffing ideas? Check out the urban vegan’s 50 ways to stuff zucchini.

Steam em’

On it’s own, steamed zucchini is a little bland. But you can liven them up with some herbs and spices. Take care not to steam too long or else they become a soggy mess!

Steamed Zucchini with garlic and olive oil

Sesame Steamed Zucchini

Make soup

Bryanna’s Delicious Zucchini Bisque

Sunny Summer Squash Soup

Curried Zucchini Soup

Stir fry

Stir-fried zucchini makes a quick, easy accompaniment to any meal.

Image: zucchini, bell pepper and corn stir-fried with olive oil, cumin seeds, salt and pepper. Served with enchiladas and black beans – yum!

Grate

Simple but delicious pasta dish: grate zucchini and stir fry with garlic and olive oil. Toss with pasta and top with parmesan cheese. SO good.

Grated zucchini is also delicious raw with salads.

Grill

Zucchini’s a great on the grill. All you need is salt, pepper and a healthy dose of olive oil. I like a sprinkle of cumin seeds, as well – very good with Mexican food.

Grilled Zucchini with garlic, oregano and rosemary

Grilled Zucchini with lemon, chili, basil and mint

Easy Grilled Zucchini

with Italian salad dressing

Make fritters

Zucchini Fritters at limes & lycopene

Courgette Fritters with Tomato and Feta Salsa

Zucchini Patties

Zucchini Corn Fritters

Courgette and Potato Cakes with Mint and Feta

Eat them raw

I already mentioned grated zucchini over a salad. Here’s a couple other ideas:

Stuffed courgette rolls

Courgette salad

Marinate

Marinating zucchini in lemon juice gives it a lightly-cooked, al dente texture.

Marinated courgette salad with pine nuts & parmesan

Make Lasagna

I suspect you could make a no-pasta lasagna with strips of zucchini “noodles” instead of lasagna. But that wouldn’t be lasagna, would it? Why not a tasty tray of the real thing?

Creamy courgette lasagna