SAUTEED ZUCCHINI WITH SUN-DRIED TOMATOES AND BASIL

Posted in Side dishes, Vegetarian-friendly, Veggies by sallybr

I’m always trying to find different ways to prepare zucchini, as we both love it so much. One of my favorite recipes is a simple stir-fry like this one, but the timing (and the size of your pan) must be just right, as a slight variation will result in overcooked, limp zucchini, with no bite whatsoever. This recipe from Fine Cooking follows a totally different path to the stir-fry happy-ending. Pieces of zucchini are lightly salted and sit for 10 minutes, a process that will draw out a lot of moisture and the bitterness that might turn some people off. After that, you will be on your way to a tasty side dish.

SAUTEED ZUCCHINI WITH SUN-DRIED TOMATOES AND BASIL
(adapted from Fine Cooking magazine #65)

2 medium zucchini
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt + more for seasoning
2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, smashed and peeled
3 oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and finely diced
6 fresh basil leaves, torn into large pieces
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 lemon, juiced

Wash the zucchini and dry them with paper towels. Trim off the ends and quarter the zucchini lengthwise. Arrange the zucchini, cut side up, on a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Sprinkle with the salt and set aside for 10 minutes. Blot the quarters dry with the paper towels. Cut each quarter on the diagonal into 3/4-inch-thick pieces.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat for 1 minute. Pour in 2 Tbs. of the oil. When the oil is hot, add the zucchini and garlic, and sauté, stirring occasionally, until the zucchini browns and softens enough that you can cut through it with the side of a fork, about 5 min. Take the pan off the heat, toss in the sun-dried tomatoes and basil, and season generously with salt and pepper. Drizzle with the lemon juice and serve immediately.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I have a bit of a troubled relationship with sun-dried tomatoes. The ones that come packed in oil are often too greasy for my taste, but their texture is much better than the dry-packed ones. My approach is to buy the ones in oil, and before incorporating in the dish let them rest on a piece of kitchen paper to blot the excess oil away.

Fresh tomatoes would not deliver the same punch of flavor. Sun-dried tomatoes are similar to red pepper flakes, instead of having their flavor uniformly diluted across the dish, they give you little spikes of heat. Perfect!

This was a delicious way to prepare zucchini, yet another recipe that can be adapted in many ways. Try adding roasted red bell pepper in place of sun-dried tomatoes, cilantro instead of basil, a bit of mint… Don’t omit the lemon juice, though. It is a must!

ONE YEAR AGO: Orzo with Heirloom Tomato Relish

TWO YEARS AGO: Headed to Brazil!

THREE YEARS AGO: The Rhubarb Brouhaha: Revelation Compote

FOUR YEARS AGO: Love me tender…

8Dec2012

EIGHT-BALL ZUCCHINI: THE MISSING FILES

Posted in Veggies by sallybr

I made this dish several months ago (we were still living in OK) but the photos were temporarily misplaced. Misplaced as in “downloaded to the wrong folder”. I stumbled upon them the other day by complete accident, while searching for a figure to include in a power point presentation. Amazing how efficiently I can mess up stuff sometimes. For those headed into the cooler months, finding eight-ball zucchini could be a stretch, but my readers in the Southern hemisphere will be able to try this recipe sooner… It is delicious!

EIGHT BALL ZUCCHINI FILLED WITH COUSCOUS AND RICOTTA CHEESE
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

2 eight-ball zucchini
1 medium regular zucchini, cut in small dice
1 Tbs grapeseed oil (or olive oil)
1 shallot, finely diced
salt and pepper
1/2 cup Israeli couscous
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup dried cranberries

Cut the top off of the round zucchini, and carefully coop out the inside, leaving a 1/4 inch wall around to contain the filling later. Reserve the pulp. Place the zucchini on a steamer basket and steam for 10 minutes, checking after 5 minutes to make sure it’s not getting too soft. Remove from the steamer and let it cool briefly. Meanwhile, prepare the stuffing: saute the shallots in grapeseed or olive oil until translucent. Add the reserved pulp of the eight ball zucchini, and the diced regular zucchini. Saute until soft and fragrant, season with salt and pepper. Reserve.

Cook the Israeli couscous in plenty of salted, boiling water. Drain it a couple of minutes before the time stated in the package, as it will cook further during baking. Reserve.

Heat the oven to 375 F. Mix the sautéed zucchini with the couscous, ricotta cheese, and dried cranberries. Adjust seasoning with a little more salt and pepper, if needed. Generously fill the hollowed eight-ball zucchini all the way to the top and rest the cap on. You may have leftover filling, depending on the size of your zucchini. Place the zucchini in a baking dish, cover lightly with foil, and bake for 35 to 30 minutes.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I’ve made stuffed zucchini many times, but most recipes omit the steaming, and ask you to simply fill it and bake it. When I make it that way, the zucchini never gets tender. I also tried microwaving to simplify life a little, but steaming works best. I know, I know, it’s an extra step and a couple more items to wash, but sometimes in the name of a nice dish sacrifices must be made. So I put on my Braveheart face, and steam it.

I’ve used quinoa in place of couscous, and it results (of course) in a lighter dish, but very tasty too. You can use rice, orzo, barley, farro, anything stuffed inside an eight-ball zucchini will immediately seem healthy and light. Stuffing with lasagna might be a stretch, though! 😉

ONE YEAR AGO: Grilling Ribbons

TWO YEARS AGO: Peppery Cashew Crunch

THREE YEARS AGO: Ossobuco Milanese: an Italian Classic

18May2012

FARFALLE WITH ZUCCHINI AND RICOTTA

Posted in Pasta & Noodles, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

Last week, after one particularly hectic day in the lab, I had no desire to stop at the grocery store on my way home. Instead, I improvised, using a few things in the fridge leftover from past culinary adventures: one reasonably large zucchini, half a container of ricotta cheese, and a Meyer lemon abandoned inside the fruit drawer.

FARFALLE WITH ZUCCHINI AND RICOTTA
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

farfalle pasta (or other favorite shape, enough for two)
1 Tbs olive oil
1 shallot, finely diced
1 large zuchinni, ends removed, shredded
zest of half a Meyer lemon
juice of Meyer lemon
3/4 cup ricotta cheese
salt
coarsely ground black pepper to taste (don’t be shy!)

Cook the pasta according to the package instructions.

Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan, add the shallot, season with salt, and cook until translucent. Increase the heat to high, and add the zucchini in a single layer. Do not touch it, allow it to cook undisturbed for a couple of minutes. Add the lemon zest, and stir the zucchini around. Add the black pepper, the ricotta cheese, stirring gently to form a sauce. Add the lemon juice, keep warm until the pasta is cooked al dente.

Add the cooked pasta to the skillet, reserving some of the cooking water. If necessary, add some of it to the farfalle/zucchini mixture. Heat everything together in low heat for a minute. Serve, with the optional grating of good parmigiano-reggiano on top.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I love zucchini and ricotta cheese together (and a Meyer lemon will always be welcome), but I must say what really made this dish was…. the cracked black pepper! Italians know a thing or two about cooking, and their “cacio e pepe” pasta is a classic for excellent reasons. This dish reminded me of it, even with the other components fighting for attention with the “Piper nigrum“. 😉

Use as much pepper as you’ll be able to enjoy, and keep it on the coarse side. The little bits of peppery heat will make this simple meal quite special.

ONE YEAR AGO: Anchovies, the final frontier!

TWO YEARS AGO: Miche Point-a-Calliere

14May2011

COUSCOUS SALAD WITH ZUCCHINI AND PINE NUTS

Posted in Salads, Side dishes, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

From one of the latest issues of Food and Wine magazine, this recipe was the only bright spot on a day in which everything that could go wrong (in the lab) went wrong. But, as we were driving through intense Los Angeles traffic that Thursday, I knew that getting home and making dinner would improve my mood. It always does, actually. Especially if I already have it all planned and laid out in my mind, which was the case that day.

COUSCOUS SALAD WITH ZUCCHINI AND PINE NUTS
(adapted from Food and Wine, May 2011)

1 cup diced zucchini
2 Tbs olive oil
salt and pepper

1 cup couscous
1 cup boiling water

3/4 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup water
2 Tbs lemon juice
2 Tbs olive oil
1/2 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
fresh mint and parsley, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a non-stick skillet and sautee the zucchini until golden. Season lightly with salt and pepper. You can prepare it in advance and keep it in the fridge.

Pour 1 cup of boiling water over the couscous in the bowl you intend to serve the salad. Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes as you prepare the rest of the recipe.

Boil the peas for 2 minutes, drain, reserving 1/4 cup of the water. Add the lemon juice and olive oil, a little salt, to the reserved pea water, and whisk well. Fluff the couscous with a fork, pour this dressing over it, mixing it well. Gently mix in the cooked peas, reserved zucchini, toasted pine nuts, and fresh herbs. Taste, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, and serve.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Next time, I will dice the zucchini in slightly larger pieces, because I’d like their presence in the salad to be a little more obvious, not only visually, but also in texture. I love the popcorn-y taste of pine nuts, but you can use almonds (as in the original Food and Wine version), or walnuts. Make sure to toast them first.

It is crucial to let the zucchini get some color, so I like to leave it undisturbed in the sautee pan for a couple of minutes, before moving the pieces around.

This could be a nice vegetarian entree, as couscous is very filling, but we enjoyed it next to a juicy, grilled chicken breast. And that was a perfect antidote for the “lab-blues.” 😉

ONE YEAR AGO: A Simple Salad a la Jacques Pepin

14Feb2010

TORTA DI ZUCCHINI

Posted in Side dishes, Vegetarian-friendly, Veggies by sallybr

I sincerely hope that I’m below the radar of the food-blog-police, or I may be in trouble for posting too many zucchini recipes. Without a doubt, to my mom’s shock and disbelief, zucchini is one of my favorite vegetables. While growing up I wouldn’t even try it, little did I know my how much my tastes would change!

The first time I tried this recipe was more than 20 years ago; it comes from an old, out of print cookbook by Giuliano Bugialli. It’s unusual because this “torta” takes no flour. It also contains zucchini cut in two different ways: grated and sliced. The grated component becomes creamy during baking, surrounding the more defined slices to form a light, refreshing, sort of crust-less quiche. By skipping the breadcrumbs, this recipe is also low in carbohydrates, for those who are counting.

TORTA DI ZUCCHINI
(from Giuliano Buggiali)

1 pound zucchini (2 medium-size), grated
1 pound zucchini, sliced thin
4 eggs, beaten
zest of 1 lemon
1/4 cup grated parmiggiano cheese
salt and pepper
fresh parsley, minced
fresh bread crumbs (about 1/2 cup)

Grease a pyrex pie dish with butter. Sprinkle some bread crumbs to coat.

Mix the beaten eggs with the lemon zest, parmiggiano cheese, 1/4 cup of bread crumbs, parsley, salt and pepper. In another bowl, place the grated and sliced zucchini. Shake the dish carefully to distribute the slices more or less evenly. Add the egg mixture to it, mix gently, and pour into the prepared pie dish. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of bread crumbs on top, forming a very light coating.

Bake in a 375F until set and golden on top. Allow it to cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This “torta” makes a nice light meal, possibly served with soup or a salad. In the summer I like to match it with tomatoes from the garden or from the farmer’s market. Leftovers are best re-heated in the oven, because microwaving tends to make it watery.

On a side note… in Brazilian Portuguese, if someone says things that make no sense, either because they are wrong or have no relevance whatsoever, the favorite expression is “to talk zucchini” (falar abobrinhas). I have absolutely no idea where the expression comes from, but maybe it helped shape my negative childhood view of zucchini. Glad I got over it. 😉