I don’t know about you, but I really like zucchini. This overseas relative of the zucchini came to Europe from Mexico. A representative of the pumpkin family, it, like a pumpkin, can grow up to several meters in length. But you can't cook from giants. The most delicious dishes are obtained from fruits with a length of about 20 cm. Depending on the variety of zucchini, they can be light green or yellow, striped or dappled with plain dots.
Unlike the usual zucchini, his European brother has a more delicate skin that can not be removed. And zucchini can be eaten raw.
Try this recipe. Zucchini (young, without seeds) is cut into strips, like a cucumber. Dressing is done separately: mix olive oil, balsamic vinegar, a little chopped garlic, herbs. The dressing is well ground, watered with salad, and sprinkled with parmesan on top.
Sometimes, when I want to get a more delicate taste, I use a different recipe for the sauce. I do not water zucchini with vinegar, but with a white sauce made from greens and yogurt. It turns out fine.
What else can you cook from zucchini? Yes, anything. I like zucchini fritters. You just need to grate one fruit, add half a glass of kefir, a few tablespoons of flour, slaked soda, spices. The dough should not be very thick, such as ordinary pancakes. Fry over medium heat until crisp. Such pancakes are good all with the same white sauce, yogurt, sour cream.
My neighbor gave me another recipe. She uses zucchini to bake pies. It turns out a pleasant savory dessert. She whips in a mixer 2 eggs, a glass of cream or milk, 2 tablespoons of flour, 2 tablespoons of yogurt, salt, herbs, pepper. Add pre-grated zucchini to the prepared whipped mixture, stir and bake for 45 minutes. An ideal addition to such a pie could be mashed fruit, honey, nuts or just sour cream. Zucchini recipes allow any gravy, here you need to focus only on your taste.
In the summer, my family is happy to eat mashed vegetable soups. This recipe is especially popular with us. I fry zucchini with onions, carrots, sweet peppers and garlic in vegetable oil. I shift it to the pan, stew for several minutes. I turn everything into mashed potatoes with a blender, add butter, a glass of cream into it, let it boil. Sprinkle with spices and herbs, salt. I especially like mint and parsley. Soup can be served with crackers or sprinkled with grated cheese. Delicate and fragrant, such a soup even helps to lose weight.
If we talk about second courses, then my favorite recipes from zucchini are fruits stuffed with vegetables, and also hot zucchini in vinegar.
To cook stuffed zucchini, I first cook the minced meat. Carrots, bell peppers, parsnips (white root), onions in approximately equal amounts of carcass until cooked in vegetable oil. I cut the zucchini into large rings, select the pulp, mix it with minced meat. I fill the rings, carefully lay them out in a stewpan, and stew for several minutes in a cream and tomato sauce with spices. Then sprinkle with cheese and send for a couple of minutes in the oven so that it melts. If someone likes hot dishes, then you can melt the cheese in the oven before serving.
Here's another recipe for zucchini in vinegar. I prepare the dressing first. For it you need olive oil, vinegar, chopped garlic. We love spicy, so we take more garlic. Everything is carefully rubbed with salt until the composition turns white.
On high heat, I fry the sliced zucchini. I do it very quickly: zucchini should not be overcooked. I spread the fried vegetables in a deep plate, sprinkle them with a mixture of very finely chopped greens and sweet pepper. Of the herbs, I like the mixture of mint, sage, basil, thyme. But this is a matter of taste. I water the dressing. Then I repeat the procedure. Such a dish is an excellent snack, it can be stored in the refrigerator for a long time.
Zucchini can be preserved for the winter. Usually, all recipes that housewives use when pickling cucumbers are suitable for them.