Zucchini Three Ways
Oven Fries with a creamy Horsey Sauce, Stuffed with Tomato or served Asian style, this versatile vegetable is welcomed with virtually any entree, and in spite of its reputation as a summer squash, it's available almost anytime of the year
The Zucchini, like all squash, was a New World vegetable from Mesoamerica, domesticated over 7,000 years ago. Zucchini's progenitors were brought to Europe during the Great Colombian Exchange of the 16th Century. But Zucchini didn't evolve; it was bred purposefully by horticulturists in Milan in the late 1800s, which is why it has its Italian name, from the word zucchino, a diminutive form of zucca meaning "little squash" or "little pumpkin." In the UK, these squash are known as courgette, the French word for the same vegetable.
Oven Fried Zucchini Sticks with Horsey Sauce
The first records of Zucchini in the US date to the early 1920s and were first made popular in the 1950s at Italian restaurants in Pittsburgh. In fact, Zucchini Fries were created around 1955 at the 7th Street Cafe in the red light district of Pittsburgh by Mary Tambellini and her brother-in-law, Franco D'Amico. It was a big part of the cafe's success, which later changed its name to Tambellini Seventh Street Ristorante. When it hit its height of popularity in the 1990s, the restaurant was going through fifty pounds of zucchini a day. Well into the 2000s, Zucchini Fries was a staple on most fern bar menus throughout the US, usually served with marinara and/or horseradish sauce. The Kitchen Tapestry version of this American classic is oven fried and served with the latter.
Zucchini Cups Stuffed with Tomato
This recipe was originally from one of my favorite Frugal Gourmet Jeff Smith recipes and his second cookbook, The Frugal Gourmet Cooks with Wine, published in 1986. I made this many times in the '80s and early '90s because it is elegant and looks complicated. It isn't. It's very simple and a lot of fun to serve. It will always get rave reviews. I have made a couple of modifications to Smith's original recipe, however, including the addition of shredded Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs incorporated into the mixture as binding agents for the stuffing. Sometimes, the Zucchini is so small in diameter, I’ve opted to make a Stuffed Zucchini “Boat,” but the cups are cuter to serve.
Asian Zucchini Spears
This is a quick, simple way to prepare a Zucchini side dish with an Asian flare that I originally made as an accompaniment to the Kitchen Tapestry recipe for Miso Glazed Salmon with Chinese Butter Fruit Dressing. It requires 4 oz of Kikkoman Teriyaki Sauce, but if you don't have that, you can substitute a 2:1 combination of soy sauce and honey, with a dash of rice wine vinegar and a pinch of dried ginger.
Oven Fried Zucchini Sticks with Horsey Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 large or 4 small zucchinis, unpeeled, cut into 1/8" x 3" sticks, about the size of an average french fried potato.
- 1/2 cup corn meal
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (like, the Kraft)
- 1 heaping tbsp Italian seasonings
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- non-stick cooking spray (like, Pam)
- fine sea salt to taste
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 4 heaping tablespoons prepared horseradish (like, Reese or Silver Spring) - do not use "cream style")
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients for the Horsey sauce together in a small mixing bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before using.
- Pre-heat the oven to 425°F with a rack in the top slot.
- Line a sheet pan or large cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray liberally with the non-stick cooking spray.
- Mix the corn meal, flour, Parmesan cheese, Italian seasonings and garlic powder together in a large mixing bowl using a wire whisk to ensure the mixture is well blended.
- Blend the two eggs and heavy cream together with a whisk.
- Dredge each zucchini stick in the egg and cream mixture, followed by coating them liberally in the corn meal and flour mixture. Lay out each stick in even rows on your sheet pan or cookie sheet, which will make turning them over with a spatula much easier.
- Allow the prepared zucchini sticks to rest for about 15 minutes.
- Lightly coat the zucchini sticks with the non-stick spray before you put them in the oven.
- Bake the zucchini on the top rack in your oven for 13 minutes.
- Take the zucchini sticks out of the oven and flip them over, then lightly spay again with the non-stick spray. Cook another 13 minutes.
- When you remove the zucchini sticks from the oven for the final time, sprinkle with the fine sea salt.
- Allow the zucchini sticks to cool to the touch before serving along side liberal portions of the Horsey Sauce.
Zucchini Cups Stuffed with Tomato
Ingredients
- 3-4 zucchini, the fatter, the better, cut into 2" high cups, or cut in half lengthwise into 4" long "boats."
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp garlic, minced
- 1 small yellow onion, finely minced
- 2-3 medium ripe tomatoes, finely diced
- 1/2 tsp dried dill weed
- 1/2 tsp table sugar
- 4-6 tbsp dry red wine
- 1/4 cup Parmesan or Romano cheese, freshly grated or shredded
- 1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs (like, Old London or Progresso)
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (like, Kraft), plus more for garnish
- pinch fine sea salt
- 6-7 grinds fresh cracked black pepper
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
Instructions
- Regardless of whether you are making Zucchini cups or "boats," use a melon-baller to scoop out most of the pulp from one end. Leave the opposite end of the zucchini intact so that its sealed at the other side. Discard the pulp and set the zucchini aside.
- Pre-heat your oven to 400°F.
- Heat a frying pan over medium high heat with the olive oil. When it begins to shimmer, add the garlic and onion.
- Sauté until the onion is clear, about 5 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes, red wine, dill weed, sugar, salt and pepper and sauté until the tomatoes are limp, but not mushy, another 8-10 minutes.
- Add the shredded Parmesan or Romano cheese to the pan and stirring to prevent burning and sticking, allow it to melt into the mixture. This will only take a couple of minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat and add the bread crumbs. Stir to combine and your stuffing should be thick, clumped together with no running juices.
- Stuff each of the zucchini cups or boats with the stuffing mixture and garnish each with the grated Parmesan cheese.
- Stand the zucchini cups or boats in a baking dish just large enough to hold them, then pour the white wine around the bottoms of the squash.
- Bake them uncovered for 40-45 minutes until the cheese is browned and bubbly.
Asian Zucchini Spears
Ingredients
- 3-4 zucchini, unpeeled, cut into 3" spears
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- 4 oz teriyaki Sauce (like, Kikkoman)
- dash sriracha Sauce (like Huy Fong)
- dash toasted sesame oil
- toasted sesame seeds for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the avocado oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
- Add the zucchini spears to the hot oil and allow to sizzle and cook for 8-10 minutes until the zucchini begins to brown. Shake the pan often and use a spatula to turn the spears frequently.
- Add the teriyaki sauce, the dash of sriracha and toasted sesame oil and cook another 2-3 minutes until the zucchini spears are tender and slightly limp.
- Sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds just before serving.
Notes
- Originally made as an accompaniment to the Kitchen Tapestry recipe for Miso Glazed Salmon with Chinese Butter Fruit Dressing.
- If you don't have teriyaki Sauce, you can substitute a 2:1 combination of soy sauce and honey, with a dash of rice wine vinegar and a pinch of dried ginger.
