Hi there, fellow food people! Chef Dad here, back with another installment of “In the Kitchen with Kayleigh.” She’s working another special event and I’m here tending the home hearth.
Zucchini. Summer squash. Whatever you want to call them, yep, they’re here. They are all around us — especially if you are a home gardener. I have a bed at the River & Roots Community Garden in downtown Riverhead, and it’s fabulous! But I haven’t had to plant any zucchini since my first year when I made the newbie mistake of planting four (yes FOUR!) zucchini plants in my own bed. Well, we are still eating zucchini bread made from grated and then frozen zucchini from that harvest! And ever since, I have not lacked in a steady supply of zucchini from other gardeners, and also from our CSA share from Goodale Farms. In other words, I’m still up to my elbows in zucchini, even though I haven’t planted any. Gardeners are wonderful sharers — especially gardeners of zucchini! If you leave a couple zucchini in the back seat of your car while you run into the store on a quick errand, I guarantee there will be double that amount back there when you get home.
So, I’ve prepared the stuff in a myriad of ways over the years — raw, sauteed, roasted, grated and made into bread and fritters. But the simplest way, and this goes for most vegetables I’ve met, is to roast them. You can mix them with all kinds of other veggies and roast them all together, or stay simple, with just a few ingredients. Freshness is the key and using the right amount of seasonings so as not to overwhelm the taste of summer. So here’s a simple recipe to get the most from your zucchini harvest, whether you actually harvested it or not. You say you don’t have any? Check the backseat of your car.
Roasted Zucchini Salad
Ingredients:
2 medium zucchini (about 1 1/2 pounds total)
½ small onion, sliced thin
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
6 oz grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, or to taste
4 tablespoons olive oil divided
Method:
1. Preheat the oven and a sheet pan to 450 degrees.
2. Wash the zucchini, trim and discard the ends, and cut crosswise into 1/4-inch thick rounds. Toss in a bowl with the sliced onion, and with 2 tablespoons of the oil, coating them thoroughly. Arrange the rounds in one layer on a large cookie sheet and sprinkle them with the salt. Place in oven for 5 to 7 minutes, until they soften slightly.
3. Transfer the zucchini/onion mixture to a bowl and toss them lightly with the pepper, vinegar and oil, adding the cheese last. Serve immediately, or at room temperature.
