Zucchini Recipes

When the abundance of summer squash has overwhelmed you, here are two great recipes. The pasta sauce recipe can be enjoyed in the winter, using grated and frozen squash.

Tess’s Zucchini Pasta Sauce

Zucchini (shred or cut into thin rounds or really any shape)

Salt

Olive Oil

Yellow Onion – 1 bulb per 3 zucchini is a good estimate

Garlic – 1 clove per zucchini used is a good estimate

Rosemary – dried or fresh, just a sprinkling

Thyme – dried or fresh, just a sprinkling

Basil – fresh, LOTS

Cut up or shred zucchini and salt it. Let sit to draw out water, anywhere from 20 minutes on, whatever time you have. In a pan, heat olive oil. Add onions and begin to sweat then add garlic.

Once translucent, squeeze water out of zucchini and add to the pan. Cook low and slow until most of the water has evaporated and the zucchini begins to brown. Add in rosemary, thyme, and basil as well as parmesan cheese. Loosen the sauce with pasta water until it is emulsified then add drained pasta. Give it all a mix. Booyah!

– Tess Borneman

A note on the recipe:

The beauty of this recipe is that it uses everything to taste or to the amount that you have available. We didn’t use any onions for our cooking class, but this recipe is even better with them. For our class I think we used 4-6 large zucchini and really cooked it down, but it’s absolutely possible to use more. When I’ve made a similar recipe for Spaghetti Dinner at Aznoe Farm I’ve used as many as 8-9 large zucchinis and a range of 5-10 garlic cloves. The only thing that changes is how long the water takes to draw out while cooking. Enjoy this free-for-all of a recipe!

– Ava Anderson

Ava’s Summer Squash & Zucchini Tart Recipe

Note: Adapted from the recipe Courgette Tart with Lemon Ricotta by Justine Doiron – https://justinesnacks.com/courgette-tart-with-lemon-ricotta/

1 pre-made frozen or refrigerated grocery store pie crust (or homemade)

1 cup ricotta

½-1 tsp. zest of 1 lemon

¼ tsp. red pepper flakes

¼ to ½ cup fresh dill, fronds not flowers/seed

4 medium or small tender zucchini and summer squash (less water in smaller = better)

Salt

Fresh cracked black pepper

Preheat oven to 375?. Roll out pre-made pie crust. Par bake for a short time, say 10-15 minutes – I definitely over-baked at 20 minutes before class and did not use weights. Use weights if you have them! Let cool.

In a small bowl mix ricotta, lemon zest, red pepper flakes, fresh dill, a pinch of salt, and a sprinkle of black pepper. Spread the ricotta mixture in the base of the pie shell.

Use a mandolin or food processor or slice summer squash/zucchini into thin strips lengthwise or into thin rounds. Each is beautiful, but has a slightly different look when arranged in the tin. Fill the pie shell with the ricotta base by standing the rounds or strips on their edge in concentric circles. It should look like the ratatouille from the Disney Pixar movie Ratatouille. Only the skin of the squash/zucchini should be visible, and yours might even look as good as cookbook author Justine Doiron’s recipe, which served as inspiration for this class – she cuts her zucchini lengthwise with a mandolin:

Finish the arranged pie with a drizzle of olive oil, a sprinkle of salt, some black pepper, any leftover dill, and a bit of the juice from the lemon you zested. Bake for 25-30 minutes. It should be done when the pie crust is a deep golden brown and the squash/zucchini has started to darken. Enjoy!

My Mom’s Chocolate Zucchini Bread

(Makes 2 loaves)

Ingredients:

3 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil (can sub applesauce for low fat version – we don’t usually do this)
2 squares (total of 2 oz) unsweetened melted chocolate
1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups grated (or finely chopped) zucchini

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In one bowl, mix together eggs, sugar, oil, chocolate, and vanilla. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, mix together flour, salt, cinnamon, baking powder, and baking soda.

Begin to stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, then fold in the zucchini. Pour into two loaf pans sprayed with cooking spray or lined with parchment paper. Bake approximately 1 hour, maybe more. Definitely start checking doneness with a toothpick at 1 hour mark. Let cool at least 20 minutes before slicing. Enjoy!