Documenting Zucchini Recipes

Many of you have zucchini growing out of your ears by now. I did too when we lived in PG, but I haven't been able to grow it since we moved here - boo hoo! Every time I've tried, some beetle eats the plant off at the stem...this year I didn't even try. Fortunately I do have some generous neighbors, since I have lots of uses for it. I thought I'd document some of our favorites. Perhaps some of you can benefit as well.

Often I'll blend up zucchini, and add the liquid to spaghetti sauce, pancake batter, and other things, and of course for zucchini bread. I have even frozen this "sauce" in yogurt or sour cream containers for later use.


Zucchini Casserole (Nels' Favorite)

Slice and par boil one large zucchini, drain and lay it in a casserole dish.

Make a very basic tomato sauce with cooked ground beef* & onion, 2 cans diced or crushed tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste. (No flour or other spices!) Poor over zucchini.

Sprinkle grated cheese over this, & be generous. Sprinkle bread crumbs over the cheese. (I usually make them with a piece of toast.) Broil until cheese is melted and starting to brown.

Mmm, mmm good!

Gardener's Omelet
(This recipe I made back when it was just the two of us.)

1 small onion, diced
2 cups chopped zucchini (small chunks)
2 small (garden size) green peppers diced
2+ small potatoes diced
2 eggs
Butter
Lemon pepper, salt & pepper to taste

Saute onion in butter until just turning transparent. Add zucchini and green peppers and fry until just barely softening. Season with lemon pepper to taste (abt 1/4 tsp). Set aside.

In same pan, fry diced potatoes in additional butter. When softened, mix in zucchini mixture. Break eggs into the mixture. Stir gently to break yolks. Salt and pepper to taste. Turn everything over until egg cooks.

Serves 2.

VitaMix Pancakes, with Zucchini
(Family Size) Original recipe from VitaMix Corp

2 1/2 c milk
2-2 1/2 c zucchini "sauce"
2 eggs
4 tbsp oil
1 tsp salt
4 tbsp sugar
3 c flour (I do 1/2 wheat 1/2 white)
4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon

Mix liquid ingredients plus salt and sugar on variable speed 4-5 for 5 seconds. Add dry ingredients and run for 5-10 seconds. Fry and enjoy.

Top zucchini pancakes with applesauce - wow!

Susan's famous Spaghetti Sauce

Cooked hamburger*
chopped onion
2-3 cans tomatoes (1 crushed, 1 diced, some mixture, can use tomato sauces too.)
2-3 crushed garlic cloves
1 tsp each, salt, oregano, and basil
Pepper to taste
2 c zucchini sauce
(If you have time to cook this a long time, add some grated carrot)

Simmer as long as you want (I usually do as long as it takes the pasta to cook al dente,) then serve. Quick, easy, and nutritious...mmmm!

*I fry all my hamburger up when I buy it -with or without onions- and pkg it for individual meals (1/2-1 lb sizes) & freeze - very quick to thaw, and makes meal prep VERY fast.