Gastroanthropology

What to do with all that Zucchini?!

There comes a time when the home gardener is faced with too much of something. In California tomatoes and zucchini often produce faster than a family can consume. Marinara in jars usually takes care of the excess tomatoes, but using all the zucchini poses a far greater task. Most "zucchini" recipes for bread and the like don't seem to use too many, so you are still left with pounds of the stuff. Rather than make a million different things that use a zucchini or two, I need a recipe that uses at least a 1/2 dozen.

Why not a vibrant green, super simple, creamy sauce that uses lots of roasted zucchini?

This recipe is great for pasta, but you'll find yourself wanting to dunk bread, crackers and carrot sticks in it. I even poured a bunch over a baked potato.

This recipe makes enough for four people (using about 12 ounces of fresh pasta) with a bit leftover for sopping some up with bread. 

CREAMY ZUCCHINI SAUCE

• 1 medium head of garlic
• 1 large onion
• 6 medium zucchini
• few sprigs of thyme
• olive oil
• salt and pepper
• chicken stock, 1 to 1 1/2 cup
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1/4 tsp red chili flakes, more if you like a little spice in your life
• 1 cup loosely packed spinach
• 2 sprigs basil (6 to 7 leaves)
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan

METHOD

Turn the oven on to 400F. Give garlic a head start in the oven, by cutting in half, widthwise. Place in a square of foil and liberally sprinkle with salt and olive oil. Close the foil around the garlic and place in the oven. 

Small dice onion and place on a large baking sheet - separating the onion pieces. Quarter zucchini lengthwise and then cut into 2 inch pieces. Add to the baking sheet. Coat the zucchini and onion gently in olive oil. Scatter sprigs of thyme on the zucchini and season with salt and pepper. Place in the oven once the garlic has been in there for 15 minutes. Roast zucchini pieces for 15 minutes or until they are soft and the edges start to brown. Remove zucchini and garlic from the oven. Discard the roasted thyme sprigs. Squeeze the garlic pieces out, or use a fork to pick them out if its too hot to touch.

Place the roasted zucchini, onion, and garlic in a medium sized pot with one cup of chicken stock. Bring up to a simmer. Add red chili flakes. In a separate small pot heat up some water. Once it comes to a simmer, blanch the spinach and basil for about 30 seconds. Immediately drain and rinse with cold water. Squeeze to remove excess water. Set aside. This will be used to keep the sauce really green. If serving with pasta make sure you have pasta water boiling and keep in mind the cooking time of your pasta. The next few steps take just a minute and you don't want start to blend your sauce until the pasta is just about done. This way it will be hot and green. 

Once the chicken stock and zucchini have come to a simmer, put in a food processor or blender. Blend till smooth, but try not to let it go so far that the sauce gets aerated. If it is really dense add a bit more chicken stock (make sure its warm). Add the cream and parmesan. Pulse to mix through. Taste. Adjust seasoning. Add blanched spinach and basil - blend till combined, again keeping in mind not to aerate the sauce too much.

Put fresh cooked pasta in a large glass bowl, liberally pour sauce over it and toss with thongs. Every bit of pasta should be heavily coated. Serve. Any excess sauce should be used for bread dipping.

Squash Blossoms + Nice Farmers Market

Coeur de Boeuf (Beefheart) Tomatoes from the market in Nice, France

London city life is quite overwhelming for me. You've got to be on alert all the time - dodging people, taxis, buses, pigeons, and menacing clouds. I try not to breath to deep because if I'm out in the city all day my nostrils are filled with soot. It can be a bit taxing on the soul. To help recharge my batteries my husband, who has spoiled me rotten, takes me to wonderful places on the weekend. Latest stop - the French Riviera. 

The beach, the sun, the Mediterranean, the warm air, friendly French people, the market...in other words, as close to heaven as you can get 2 hours away from London. It wasn't my first visit to Nice, so I knew the highlight would be swim and sun at the beach and the produce at the market in the Old Town. 

The first time I went to Nice many, many, years ago was for the Cannes Film Festival and I was lucky enough to be invited by a Roger Verge protege for lunch at Verge's restaurant, Le Moulin de Mougins. Verge is considered to be one of the great french chefs and pioneers of nouvelle cuisine. Le Moulin de Mougins is a converted 16th century olive mill that includes a small inn and cooking school, and one of the best restaurants I have ever eaten at. The squash blossoms at the market reminded me of the wonderful lunch, which included many firsts for me, like chicken breast stuffed with foie and lightly fried squash blossoms.  

While some of these peaches I returned home with, I knew the squash blossoms would not survive the trip.

So, when I returned to London I went on a search for squash blossoms. I couldn't find them anywhere, so I waited till the end of the week for Borough Market, because I knew if anyone in London had squash blossoms it would be Borough. Through the roof pricey so I just got a few.

STUFFED SQUASH BLOSSOM, makes 1/2 dozen

• 1/2 c ricotta cheese, drained overnight in cheesecloth
• 1/2 c fresh mozzarella, medium dice 
• 1/3 c fresh, raw corn kernels 
• 1 large salted anchovy fillet, rinsed and patted dry, then minced 
• 6 squash blossoms, stamen removed, gently rinsed and patted dry 
• flour + pepper for dredging 
• 2 eggs lightly beaten for dredging. 
• olive oil for frying 

 
METHOD

Combine first four ingredients in a bowl. I'm not a huge fan of herbes de provence - quelle horreur! But, if you do enjoy herbes de provence add a few pinches to the mixture. Use pastry bag or small spoon to fill the squash blossoms. Fill to where the petals start to split. Press gently in the palm of your hand and twist the petals gently to close the blossom. Before you fry consider making a small side salad. I made one with zucchini, tomatoes, parsley, splash of olive oil, and s+p. 

Pour enough oil in a pot to submerge the blossoms 1/2 way up. While the oil is heating, lightly dust stuffed blossoms with flour with pepper, then in the egg, then back in flour. When the oil is hot for frying (I don't use a thermometer, just drop a pinch of flour in the oil and see if it bubbles up). Gently drop the blossoms in the oil. I did two at a time. After 1 minute or when the blossom starts to brown on the bottom, gently flip the blossom over. When the blossom is totally golden brown, remove from oil onto paper-towels. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt. Serve immediately.   

If anchovies aren't your thing try a bit of chopped olives instead.

I know I have Borough Market, but the taste of the fruits in Nice really is something to write home about.

More on the seafood and socca (chickpea flour pancakes) of Nice in a few days!