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In This Issue

Fast, Fun Veggies

A delicious twist on basic spaghetti: Baking it with spinach, sausage and cheese melds the flavors deliciously and creates a one-dish meal that’s almost as good as lasagna—without all the work. Use a smaller or larger amount of meat, as desired, or omit completely for a vegetarian version.

Serves: 4

Ingredient Notes

Salt and Pepper If salt and pepper are the main Flavor Boosters for zucchini, as with the basic saute, consider being slightly more generous than usual with the salt and pepper.

Get Creative: Cutting Techniques

Although this is a simple recipe, it is easy to add flair with some creative cutting techniques. Check them out here.

Get Creative: Flavor Combinations

(Note that measurements are given as a range for stronger flavors that are more subject to personal tastes. Use the smaller amounts for any that are unfamiliar, then taste and decide if you want more. Read more about “In a recipe, how much is ‘to taste?’ “) Also, don’t hesitate to mix ‘n match, e.g., maybe a little Parmesan cheese sprinkled over the Lemon Tarragon Squash, or basil instead of oregano in the Greek variation, and so on.

1. Lemon Tarragon For a familiar flavor combo that is especially nice with zucchini stir in:

1-2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice (not from concentrate; lime juice can be substituted)
1-3 tsp. chopped fresh tarragon (dried does not make a good substitute in this recipe)
1-2 tsp. high quality olive oil (if desired)

2. Spicy Szechuan San-J’s Hot & Spicy Szechuan Stir-Fry Sauce makes this a super easy variation. Although San’J’s sauce has a wonderful flavor, it is VERY HOT, so use carefully! Before cooking zucchini, saute until brown:

1 med. onion, sliced about ¼” thick and 2” long

Remove onion to a bowl, then cook zucchini as directed. When done, return onion to pan along with first half of zucchini, then stir in:

½ to 2 Tbsp. San-J Szechuan sauce

Helpful Hint: The leftovers make great lunchbox fare. See The Vegetable Queen Twitter for August 10, 2009

3. Parmesan Basil An Italian classic that can even tempt picky eaters. Sprinkle the sauteed zucchini with:

¼ to ½ cup fresh Parmesan cheese
¼ to ½ cup sliced fresh basil

Allow to sit for 1-2 minutes before serving.

4. Tomato, Garlic and Oregano For a Greek flair, just before second half of zucchini is cooked, add:

6 cloves garlic, chopped (or 2-3 tsp. bottled garlic)

Cook 1-2 minutes, then remove both garlic and zucchini to bowl with first half of zucchini. To the pan, throw in

2-3 med., ripe tomatoes, diced to about 1”
½ tsp. sugar

Cook on medium-high heat, just long enough to slightly soften tomatoes and evaporate most of their juices. Return zucchini to pan and continue cooking to warm everything thoroughly. Stir in:

2-3 Tbsp. chopped fresh oregano

Cook one more minute, taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.

5. Chili, Cilantro Lime Don’t forget a classic Mexican treatment: When cooking squash, skip the pepper. Instead, before removing cooked squash from heat, stir in:

1-2 tsp. chili powder

Continue cooking and stirring another minute or two, then remove from heat and sprinkle with:

1-2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice (not from concentrate)
¼ to ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro

Basic Sauteed Zucchini–With 5 Variations

Learn one basic saute–vary it easily five ways. Then make up your own variations. As mentioned in the introduction, zucchini is a very versatile vegetable that tastes good with just about any flavor combination, as you can see here.

Ingredients

Instructions

2 lbs. zucchini, cut in matchsticks ½” square and 1½” long (about 4 cups cut squash)

1 Tbsp. olive oil

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add half the zucchini and spread evenly into a single layer across bottom of pan, with a little space around each piece. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Allow zucchini to brown nicely (about 2-3 minutes) before turning with a spatula. Cook and turn like this until zucchini is browned on most sides. Remove to bowl.

Repeat process with other half of zucchini. When second half is cooked, return first half to pan and remove from heat.

Serve as is or add one of the flavor combinations below.

Sauteed Zucchini with Lemon and Tarragon. Tarragon has long slender leaves that should be stripped from stem before chopping.

Sauteed Pattypan Squash with Chili, Lime and Cilantro

Gorgeous Pattypans