Zucchini and Green Bean Soup

13 06 2010

It’s good to know I’m not the only one who likes soup, even in summer. I wasn’t sure if readers would be interested in soup recipes, but earlier this week I shared a recipe for asparagus soup and lots of people commented on it.

One reader asked if it would work with green beans. I’d never tried it before, but that same day a recipe appeared in the Denver Post for Zucchini and Green Bean Soup. In addition to the namesake vegetables, the soup has edamame and pesto for more protein and flavor.

At first pesto might seem like an odd addition, but basil is a perfect match for sauteed zucchini so adding it to soup isn’t such a stretch. I freeze pesto in cubes when I make it in bulk in August, then add it to minestrone in winter and pea soup in summer. In fact, I just made the pea soup last night for a friend and used up nearly the last of last season’s pesto! Now if only my baby basil plants outside would start to grow.


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Zucchini Pie

5 09 2009

zucchini pie
Usually I think of zucchini as something to use up. There’s so much of it, after all, especially when you’re in a CSA. But this week I was disappointed to find that I didn’t have enough. Must be a first, right? I’d planned on making another batch of chocolate chip zucchini bread but also was hoping to make zucchini pie for dinner. Hmmm. Bread vs. Pie. Which would win?

In a down-to-the wire decision that surprised even myself, I ended up making zucchini pie. Hard to believe, I know, given how delicious the zucchini bread is, especially with all those chocolate chips. But this zucchini pie is fantastic, lighter somehow than a regular quiche and popping with flavor. It’s great for dinner with a salad and crusty bread.

Zucchini Pie
4 cups sliced zucchini
1 cup chopped onion
6 tablespoons butter
½ cup chopped parsley
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon dried basil or a handful of fresh basil, chopped
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups shredded mozzarella
2 teaspoons Dijon
Pie crust for 9” pan, unbaked

Preheat oven to 340. Melt the butter in a large sauté pan and add the zucchini and onions. Cook for about 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley, salt, pepper, basil and oregano. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, then stir in the cheese. Place pie crust in the pie pan and spread with Dijon. Then add the egg mixture to the zucchini and mix well. Fill pie and bake for about 45 minutes or until filling is set.


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Zucchini Stuffed with Cheese and Corn

21 07 2009

IMG_1405“Wow, mom, this is an awesome dinner,” my seven-year-old daughter raved as she reached across the table, arm outstretched. “High five on this one.”

What got her so excited? Was it noodles with butter and parmesan (a long-standing favorite) or chocolate cake with white frosting (another one)? No, it was scrambled eggs with smoked ham, Cheddar and parsley; organic green beans (from our CSA); and her favorite dish on the plate…stuffed cue-ball zucchini. I know this because right after she said the words above, she followed it up with, “and my favorite is the zucchini!”

Honest truth.

Given the state of kids’ meals in this country, you’d think that kids would only gush about chicken nuggets and fries and spaghetti with red sauce. But my oldest proves what they’ve long known in Europe: kids can eat — not to mention love — grown-up food. Even somewhat unusual food like stuffed zucchini.

I admit, the intensity of her reaction took me by surprise. I’d half expected the kids to pull out the line we’ve taught them to say when facing something they’re not crazy about, which is, “This isn’t my favorite but I’m glad I tried it.” But instead Katie gobbled it up and asked for more.

Zucchini Stuffed with Cheese and Corn
Inspired by a recipe in Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison
Serves 2-4, depending on if you cut them in half or serve them whole

2 cue-ball zucchini (large green zucchini work well, too)
1 1/2 T butter
1/2 onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chopped basil
1 tablespoon chopped parsley (or use 2 tablespoons of one of them)
1 1/2 cup cooked corn kernels
1/2 cup cooked rice (leftovers from take-out Chinese work well)
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella
2 T parmesan

Boil a large pot of salted water and cook zucchini until just tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and run under cool water. When cool, cut off the tops and scoop out the flesh, then finely chop it. In a saute pan, saute the onion in the melted butter about 7 minutes, then add the garlic and cook about 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add the zucchini and saute until tender and browned in places. Add the herbs, corn, rice and cheeses, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Stuff back into the hollowed-out zucchini and microwave until hot. These can be made a day ahead and kept in the fridge.


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Pasta with Sauteed Zucchini

16 07 2009

If you’re part of a farm share, you’ve probably exhausted your supply of zucchini recipes by now. In the past two weeks, I’ve made several loaves of zucchini bread, creamy zucchini soup, zucchini pie and sauteed zucchini with garlic and parsley. Just when I was feeling smug that I’d used up all the cue-ball zucchini, yellow squash and green-skinned zucchini in my fridge, six more arrived in my bag. What’s a cook to do?

Arriving home later than expected and with little time to cook dinner, I opted for Noodles with Sauteed Zucchini. If ever there was a slam dunk meal — both for the kiddos, who love noodles, and for busy cooks — this is it. In the time it takes to boil the water and cook spaghetti you can put the whole thing together. As is the case with many of my recipes, what follows is part technique, part recipe, since the idea is to make use of the produce you have on hand. Adjust portion sizes accordingly.

Incidentally, for health reasons unrelated to anything Atkins, my husband isn’t supposed to eat carbohydrates. Whenever I serve noodles, he throws chicken or sausage (or whatever protein we have on hand) on the grill. Tonight it was chicken, and when it was done I cut some up and added it to my pasta. My four-year-old liked what he saw, but wanted the chicken “next to the noodles, not touching.” Seeing it on his plate underscored just how versatile this recipe really is. You can serve it as a main course, with a green salad and crusty bread. You can toss in some chicken for heartier fare. Or you can serve it alongside the protein of your choice as a side dish. Now that’s a slam dunk.

Pasta with Sauteed Zucchini
Put a large pot of salted water to boil. In a separate saute pan, gently color a few cloves of minced garlic in a hearty pour of olive oil. Take several zucchini (or a mixture of yellow squash and zucchini, for aesthetic purposes), quarter them lengthwise and slice them, and saute until tender. When the water boils, add whole wheat noodles and cook al dente. Drain, reserving some of the cooking water. Add the pasta to the zucchini, then toss with a generous amount of parmesan cheese (a half-cup or more). If the pasta is too thick, thin with a few tablespoons of the cooking water, and season to taste. Serve with additional parmesan and lots of chopped basil.
IMG_1394


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Zucchini Soup Recipe

5 07 2009

IMG_1380Summer is definitely here. Not that you’d know it by the weather, which dampened many plans this holiday weekend. But when 4 pounds of zucchini showed up in my CSA delivery, there was no mistaking the season.

Nestled among the turnips and lettuce and broccoli were three varieties of squash: yellow summer squash, dark green zucchini, and a lesser-known round summer squash with a light-green skin. Last year, in my first year of a CSA, I admit I didn’t know what to do with the round one. Now I’ve learned to use it in any zucchini recipe where you don’t need to showcase aesthetics. While the round one lacks the bright green pop from the skin and has more fleshy “insides”, it has the same mild flavor and can be eaten cooked or raw.

Faced with so many pounds of the stuff, I pulled out a recipe for Creamy Basil Zucchini Soup that had caught my eye last year in Sunset. Never having tasted zucchini soup before — it doesn’t headline many menus — I was a little hesitant, but I assumed that the generous cup of basil would save the day, if indeed the day needed saving. Another similar recipe from the June 2008 issue of Gourmet contains just 1/3 cup of basil for the same amount of zucchini.

Turns out, I had no need to worry about the soup. The zucchini is mild enough that it allows the basil to shine through with loads of summery goodness. After sautéing an onion and simmering 2 pounds of zucchini in chicken broth until tender, you puree it in a blender, resulting in a surprisingly thick and creamy texture. Indeed, if I had ordered it in a restaurant, I would’ve guessed the soup included potatoes or rice as a thickener. The recipe calls for pouring the soup through a strainer but I prefer a bit of texture and chose to leave some bits of zucchini and basil. In Gourmet‘s version, the soup is topped with blanched julienned zucchini — a nice touch, but an extra step that a busy home cook like me doesn’t have time for!

Click here for the recipe for Creamy Basil and Zucchini Soup.


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