zucchini parmesan.

Should you decide (like me) that because the weather feels remarkably fall-like for July (was last week perfect or was last week perfect), that you want to go all in and just consume comfort food, might I suggest this dish.  An excellent way to utilize that summer produce (notably zucchini which everyone is bored of by early August) in a way that feels remarkably rich and comforting.   

While it is comforting, this is not particularly rich.  It is not loaded with cheese (though there is some), its not filled with oil or eggs.  It's a simple baked dish filled with layers of roasted zucchini and tomato sauce.  I don't know how it happens to taste so decadent (but not in  a I can only eat one bite kind of way) but it does!  And it's awesome.   

Zucchini Parmesan

Recipe adapted from the NYTimes

The original recipe called for making fresh tomato sauce with farmers market tomatoes.  Normally I'm into that thing but when I make fresh sauce, it's an all weekend affair involving 20 pounds of tomatoes and a lot of cursing.  I wasn't going to do that for this dish.  I used canned tomatoes and it was great.  Though if you want to use fresh, by all means do so.    

For the Sauce

1 28 oz can tomatoes

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 to 4 garlic cloves (to taste)

Salt and pepper

⅛ teaspoon sugar

2 sprigs fresh basil

1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

1 cup ricotta (optional)

For the Zucchini Parmesan

2 to 2¼ pounds zucchini

 Salt and pepper

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

½ to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (pepperoncini), to taste

¾ cup freshly grated Parmesan

To make tomato sauce, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat and add 

garlic. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 seconds to a minute, and add tomatoes, salt, pepper, sugar and basil sprigs. Increase heat to medium-high. When tomatoes are bubbling briskly, stir and reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring often, until tomatoes have cooked down and are beginning to stick to pan, 15 to 25 minutes, depending on consistency. Remove basil sprigs; taste and adjust seasoning. Stir in chopped basil and ricotta (if using).

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment. Trim ends off zucchini and cut in half crosswise, then into lengthwise slices, about 1/4 to 1/3 inch thick. Season on both sides with salt and pepper and toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Arrange zucchini slices on baking sheets in one layer and sprinkle with red pepper flakes. Roast for 12 minutes, until lightly browned and easily pierced with a knife. Remove from oven and reduce heat to 375 degrees.

To assemble the dish, oil a 2-quart gratin with olive oil. Spread 1/4 cup tomato sauce over bottom of dish. Arrange a third of the zucchini in an even layer over tomato sauce. Spoon a third of remaining sauce over zucchini and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan. Repeat with 2 more layers, ending with 1/4 cup Parmesan. Drizzle on remaining tablespoon olive oil. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, until bubbling and browned on the top and edges. Remove from heat and allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

olive oil zucchini cake.

5 days after we returned from the West Coast, I set out to make my versions of the best dishes we ate there.  Things like steamed clams with roasted tomatoes and slow cooked beans with corn and feta. Most of these recipes were my own interpretations - I didn't have recipes to follow so I trusted my memory and referenced the notes I typed in between bites.  Some of the dishes were hits and others were nothing like the original I was emulating. Regardless of the outcome, I enjoy trying.  It's fun to bring home a taste of your vacation.  

But, sometimes I get lucky and stumble across the recipe for one of these most notable dishes.  I fell in love with the Olive Oil Zucchini Bread from The Whale Wins in Seattle so you can only imagine the happy dance I did when I found the recipe online.   

I like this zucchini bread a lot because it feels incredibly fall appropriate (it's grilled!) but it also feels like the kind of thing you could serve at the end of a dinner party and no one would bat an eye.  Most zucchini bread conjures visions of picnics and afternoon snacks but this one is dignified and very adult-like.  Which means it would be perfect for your next dinner party (or just because it's Sunday).  

Olive Oil Zucchini Cake

Recipe Adapted from Not Without Salt  

I dialed back the sugar because I found the amount of sugar in zucchini breads to be absurdly high.  I feel you could cut the sugar back by a couple more tablespoons but haven't tested this yet so I don't want to say you definitely should!  Feel free to try and let me know.     

Makes 1 9-by-5-inch loaf pan

For the Cake

3 cups grated zucchini (from 1 pound zucchini)

1 3/4 cups granulated sugar, divided

Unsalted butter, for the pan

2 cups (about 256 grams) all-purpose flour, sifted, plus more for the pan

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon finely grated nutmeg

3 large eggs

Grated zest from 2 large lemons

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup minus 2 tablespoons  extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon turbinado or demerara sugar

For Serving

Unsalted butter

Créme fraiche or if you are like me, thick greek yogurt or labnah 

Flaky sea salt, such as Maldon or Jacobsen

Preheat the oven to 350•F.

For the cake: In a mixing bowl, blend the zucchini with 1/4 cups of the granulated sugar. Transfer the mixture to a fine-mesh strainer and set the strainer over the mixing bowl. Fill another bowl, this one just big enough to fit inside the strainer, about halfway with water and carefully set the water bowl directly on top of the zucchini. (This presses the water out of the zucchini.)

Butter and flour a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan, and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, ginger, baking powder, baking soda, and nutmeg.

In another bowl, whisk together the remaining 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla until well blended. beat in the olive oil in three stages, whisking until it is thoroughly combined each time.

Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until no white spots remain. Working with a handful of zucchini at a time, use your hands to press and wring all excess moisture out of the zucchini. When all the zucchini has been pressed, add it to the batter, and stir it in gently until evenly distributed.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle the top evenly with the turbinado sugar. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 70 to 75 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Cool the bread in the pan for about 20 minutes, then turn it out onto a cooling rack and let it cool completely.

To serve:  Cut the bread into 1-inch-thick slabs. Melt about 3 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. (Use the same amount of butter for however many pieces of bread will fit into the skillet at once.) When the butter is melted and foamy, add a few slices, and cook for a few minutes on each side, until warm and toasted. Serve the bread over a smear of créme fraiche, sprinkled with sea salt. Repeat with the remaining bread.

roasted zucchini salad.

In my never ending quest to eat more vegetables without feeling as if I am eating more vegetables, I've begun to really think about salads and what a salad actually is and can be.

The default is to think of salad as a side to the main meal.  It probably conjures images of lettuce (most likely iceberg), halved cherry tomatoes, and cucumber slices.  I imagine it is tossed in an "herbed" Italian vinaigrette and served with a couple of slices of bad Italian bread.

And it's bad.  Just really awful and the reason I hated salads for so long.

But now that I have my own kitchen I can rethink everything.  My salads have begun to look very different then your standard "lettuce just thrown into a bowl with a couple of sub-standard accouterments".  They are flavorful! Each ingredient is well thought-out! And they are comprised of things other than lettuce.  Don't get me wrong - I love a good head of butter lettuce and arugula is the cat's pajamas but you know what makes for a really great salad base? Roasted zucchini.  Zatar roasted zucchini to be exact.  It's flavorful, substantial, and it can stand-up to a whole slew of mix-in's without getting limp and soggy.   Things like chickpeas, toasted chopped almonds, and feta.  It's a salad that can stand-up as a main but can also serve as a side at your next BBQ without going bad.  If there is a way to make summer even better, this is it.      

Roasted Zucchini Salad with Chickpeas, Almonds, and Feta

Serves 4 as a main and 6 as a side

This salad is a dream because it tastes just as good on the day of as it does 2 days later.  How many salads manage to get better with age?   Like 3.  Maybe.   Being able to make it ahead and have it still taste phenomenal hours later is why it deserves a spot at your next summer soiree.  Call dibs on the leftovers for lunch.

For the Zucchini

4 or 5 small to medium sized zucchini sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons zatar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sumac

For the Salad

1/4 cup almonds toasted and chopped
1 cup chickpeas
1/4 cup mixed herbs (I used basil, mint, and lemon thyme)
1/2 cup crumbled feta

For the Dressing

Juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
Squeeze of honey
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 teaspoon aleppo pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Place the zucchini slices in a bowl and toss with the olive oil, zatar, salt and sumac.  Lay the zucchini slices in a single layer on the baking sheet (this will need to be done in 2 batches).  Roast for 15 minutes.  Flip the zucchini and then roast for an additional 10 minutes.   Repeat with the remaining zucchini slices.

Combine the zucchini slices in a bowl with the almonds, chickpeas, herbs, and feta.  

Combine the dressing ingredients in a bowl.  Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary.  Pour over the salad ingredients and toss to combine.  Eat with abandon.

turkey zucchini burgers with sumac sauce.

I realize I am 29 going on 30 and that at my age I shouldn't be looking for ways to sneak more vegetables into the foods I eat.  I should eat more vegetables willingly.

But in every 29 year old there lies a bit of their 5 year old self and for that reason I still look for ways to trick myself into eating more vegetables. (Because more vegetables is always a good thing.)  

The easiest way to add more vegetable deliciousness into your life is by combining vegetables with something that people love.  Tacos will always and forever be my favorite vegetable vehicle (you can stuff anything in a tortilla and have it taste awesome, true fact) but meatballs and burgers are a superb alternative when you are looking to try something new.  Vegetables, especially grated vegetables, manage to melt into the meat as it cooks which means they become practically invisible to the eyes of those that hate green things.  

These turkey zucchini burgers may be one of the greatest things ever. There is one whole zucchini packed in there along with a plethora of herbs and spices which helps to create one incredibly moist and delicious patty. They are pretty excellent on there own but when smothered in sumac sauce they become positively addicting. 

Turkey Zucchini "Burgers" with Sumac Sauce
Recipe from Jerusalem: A Cookbook 

For the Meatballs

1 pound (300g) ground turkey
1 large zucchini, coarsely grated (scant 2 cups/200g)
3 green onions, thinly sliced (chives also work brilliantly as I was out of green onions)
1 large free-range egg
2 tablespoons chopped mint
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
About 6 1/2 teaspoons sunflower oil (canola oil will work too)

For the Sauce

Scant 1/2 cup (100g) sour cream
Scant 2/3 cup (150g) Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, crushed
1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon sumac
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Make the  sauce by placing all the ingredients in a small bowl. Stir well and set aside or chill until needed.

Preheat the oven to 425F/220C. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients for the meatballs except the sunflower oil. Mix with your hands. Using a tablespoon (or a regular spoon), scoop about 2 tablespoons of the turkey mixture and shape into about 18 patties.  Place patties on an oiled baking sheet.  

Pour enough oil into a large frying pan to form a layer about 1/16 inch thick on the pan bottom. Heat over medium heat until hot, then sear the meatballs in batches on all sides. Cook each batch for about 4 minutes, adding oil as needed, until golden brown.

Carefully transfer the seared meatballs to a baking sheet lined with waxed paper and place in the oven for 5 to 7 minutes, or until just cooked through. Serve warm or at room temperature, with the sauce spooned over or on the side.

caponata.

We've reached this point where I've started to realize that in just a few short weeks the tomatoes, corn, and zucchini that are currently ABUNDANT at the farmer's market, will be gone.

I am going to be so sad when they are gone.  

The plus side is right now we are experiencing that kind of epic weather that only ever exists during the first couple of weeks of September.  I live for this time of year.  When summer produce is still bountiful and things like turning on an oven doesn't break me out in a sweat.  I love being able to coerce new flavors out of summer ingredients through cooking and roasting and baking.  It allows the foods of summer to take on a whole new level of flavor.  

This caponata is the epitome of everything I want to eat right now. It's chock-full of all sorts of summer deliciousness (tomatoes! eggplant! zucchini!! peppers!) but when cooked together it takes on a whole new dimension.  Caponata is kind of like an Italian sweet and sour stew.  It's traditionally eaten as an anti-pasta (and I've been known to eat entire bowls of it like that) but it also makes for a great side to sausages or served over a bed of pasta. However you choose to eat it, you will find yourself returning for seconds.  

Caponata Modo Mio

Recipe adapted From Urban Italian

Serves 6 - 8

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced large
1 red pepper, diced large
1 yellow pepper, diced large
2 Japanese eggplants or 1 Italian eggplant, diced large
2 small or 1 large zucchini, diced large
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 cloves of garlic, sliced thin
½ cup raisins re-hydrated in 1 cup water

1 cup basic tomato sauce 

2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves 
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted and roughly chopped

Basil for sprinkling

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Add the onion, peppers, and eggplant. When the vegetables have softened a bit (about 5 minutes), add the zucchini. Season  with half the salt and pepper. Mix the ingredients together and continue to cook.

After ten 10 minutes, add the red pepper flakes and garlic. Cover and reduce the heat to medium, and let the steam roast the vegetables for 5 minutes.

Remove the raisins from the water and add to the pot with the tomato sauce.  Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, until vegetables are soft but not falling apart and the sauce is well incorporated.

Remove the saucepan from the heat, Add the fresh oregano and season with remaining salt and pepper. Mix in vinegar. Serve in a large bowl with pine nuts sprinkled on top.

zucchini butter.

We are finally at that glorious time of year where the markets are brimming and overflowing with the ingredients that make me weak in the knees. Tomatoes! (I had my first heirloom of the season last night and I practically wept.)  Corn! (Slathered in butter with lots of salt and pepper please.) Peppers! (Slow roasted until they collapse and then stuffed into a foccacia sandwich with mozzarella.)

But I am not here to talk about those beautiful foods today (come back in a week or two).  I am here to discuss zucchini.  (If we were in a room together and I was making that statement, I'm imagining a long awkward silence to occur right about...now.)

Zucchini.  Zucchini is a vegetable that somehow manages to give and give and then give some more.  If you have a garden and are growing zucchini $100 bucks says that by the end of the summer you are begging for the zucchini to stop because you can't bring yourself to eat another bite.  There is a reason why zucchini has ended up in so many baked goods (zucchini bread! zucchini whoppie pies! zucchini pancakes!), someone needed to find a way to consume all of it without going mad.  If that person knew about zucchini butter, I imagine they would have been encouraged their zucchini plants to keep on giving. 

Zucchini butter is basically shredded zucchini cooked down with a (little bit) of butter until it gets soft and tender and jammy.  At that point its spreadable vegetable wonderfulness that begs to be slathered on well toasted bread and served with goat cheese.  

Here's to the summer of zucchini.  

Zucchini Butter
Recipe via Food 52

There is an endless number of changes you could make to this dish. Spices! (Crushed red pepper flakes! Smoked parika! Aleppo pepper!) Herbs! (Basil! Mint!).  I am dreaming about endless varieties though I must admit, the original version is utterly addicting.

Makes about 2 cups

2 pounds zucchini or assorted summer squash (feel free to use less or add extra -- cooking times will vary)

¼ cup olive oil or butter (I strongly recommend the butter)

2 minced cloves of garlic

Salt and pepper to taste

Coarsely grate the zucchini. Let it drain in a colander for 3 to 4 minutes or until you are ready to begin cooking. To hasten cooking time, squeeze the water out of the zucchini by wringing it in a clean cloth towel.

In a deep skillet, heat the olive oil/butter until warmed/melted. Add the garlic to the pan and sauté briefly. Add the zucchini and toss. Cook and stir over medium to medium-high heat until the zucchini reaches a spreadable consistency, about 15 minutes. If you scorch the bottom, turn the flame down! (And scrape those delicious bits into the butter for added flavor -- you can splash in a little water to help deglaze the pan.) The zucchini will hold its bright green color and slowly caramelize into a nice vegetable jam.  Season with salt and pepper. 

Enjoy on toast.  Or by the spoonful.  

sauteed zucchini pizza with walnut pesto and ricotta.

I decided today, on the walk home from work, that the month of September may be the best month at the farmer's market.  It's where summer and fall collide into a beautiful produce filled mess, where tomatoes and apples and pumpkin and zucchini and peaches and peppers live together harmoniously.  It's an epic time. 

I've waited for what feels like months to make this pizza.  I first saw a recipe for it long before zucchini season arrived and so I filed it away so that when August did arrive I could make it.  The thing about August and pizza is that they don't really go together because its too god damm hot to make pizza when your apartment already feels like a sauna.  Turning on the oven and then the air conditioner to try and offset the heat radiating out of the oven is just a recipe for disaster.  (Unless of course you have a grill or an outdoor pizza oven and if that's the case I would love for you to send me an e-mail so we can schedule a weekend to get together next year since I would love to take advantage of those things. I promise to also bring dessert.) 

Thankfully zucchini season extends into September when the weather is cooler (bye air conditioning, hello open windows!), and I can finally have a relationship with my oven again and with pizza!  This pizza is a good way to merge the seasons - the pungent pesto and spicy sauteed zucchini reminds you of summer where as the smoky mozzarella is reminiscent of fall. I love serving it with ice cold pumpkin beers (what could be better on a Sunday night?!) 

Sauteed Zucchini Pizza with Walnut Pesto and Ricotta

Recipe is a combination of several most notably this one and this one

Makes 2 pizzas

So a couple of notes. I tested a new pizza dough recipe since I always love trying new things.  The one I used is here (I halved it).  As you already know there are more then enough pizza dough recipes on this blog (here,  here, and here).  Any of these would work well, just depends on what type of recipe you are looking for.  Store-bought pizza dough is always an option (no judgement).  Any leftover pesto/zucchini can be folded into pasta for a killer lunch.  

For the Pizza

2 zucchini, thinly sliced into rounds

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 - 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 balls of pizza dough (see notes above on recipe's for dough)

4 tablespoons creme fraiche, divided

2 garlic cloves thinly sliced

2/3 cup walnut pesto (recipe below)

1 (4 ounce ball) smoked mozzarella (if you can't find smoked regular works as well), torn into pieces

1/2 - 3/4 cup fresh ricotta

2 cups of arugula tossed with a pinch of salt

Walnut Pesto 

1 cup toasted walnuts

2/3 cup fresh basil

2/3 cup arugula

Juice of half a lemon

1 clove garlic

2 -3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan

1/3 - 1/2 cup olive oil (depending on your preference, I prefer less oil then what traditional recipes call for)

2 tablespoons heavy cream or half and half

Salt and pepper to taste

Make the walnut pesto: Puree walnuts, basil, arugula, lemon juice and garlic, then stream in olive oil and cream.  Puree completely. Transfer to a medium bowl and fold in grated Parmesan.  Add salt and peper to taste 

If using a pizza stone, place it on the top rack of your oven and preheat at 500°F for 1 hour.  Use convection if you have it.  If you are not using a pizza stone, preheat your oven 20 minutes before you are ready to bake.  Lighly oil a baking sheet or a metal pizza pan. 

Sauté zucchini with olive oil and red pepper flakes over high heat until deeply browned in parts, 6–8 minutes.

Form each ball of pizza dough into 12"–14" rounds on a floured work surface.  If using a pizza peel dust it with semolina flour or cornmeal.  If not prepare the pizza on your oiled pizza pan.  Place 1 formed pizza dough on peel/pan and spread with 2 tablespoons crème fraîche, along with thin slices of 1 garlic clove.  Top with ⅓ cup walnut pesto, torn pieces of fresh mozzarella, ¼ cup ricotta and a generous amount of zucchini. 

Slide pizza onto pizza stone using a swift movement or place pizza pan in the oven and bake for 8­–10 minutes until golden brown and darker in some parts.  Assemble the next while the previous is baking.

Remove and top each pizza with 1 cups of arugula and a sprinkle of flaky salt.

zucchini whoopie pies.

Considering my undying love affair for whoopie pies, it was only a matter of time before I let myself get creative with them.  I blame my other half for my infatuation mostly because it wasn’t until I ventured north into the great state of Maine that I became acquainted with them (and then obsessed with them).  In Maine they are ubiquitous, the way cupcakes are to NYC.  Some versions are the size of my head (really they are and really I may have eaten the whole thing), some have fillings that veer into the buttercream family (not my favorite) and some are utter perfection.  While I will always hold the traditional chocolate cake one with a marshmallow fluff center as the best of the best, I am willing to test some new flavor combinations in an effort to allow some of the others to enter the running. 

These whoopie pies came about after a bout of inspiration and a lot of starring at the zucchini sitting on the counter taunting me.  The inspiration came from one of my most favorite cakes (this zucchini olive oil cake that will forever be one of the best things I’ve ever eaten) and with that as the starting point, these emerged.  I like to think of these as a grown up version of a childhood favorite.  The combination of spiced cake with a fluffy marshmallow frosting is undeniably addicting which makes these the perfect treat for a picnic lunch or a dessert for a fancy dinner party. 

Zucchini Whoopie Pies

Cake recipe via Gourmet Magazine.  Filling recipe via Not Without Salt

Makes about 12 whoopie pies

For Cakes

2 cups coarsely grated zucchini (10 ounces)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup well-shaken buttermilk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

For Filling

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups confectioners sugar
2 cups marshmallow cream such as Marshmallow Fluff (homemade recipe below)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Make cakes: Preheat oven to 350°F with racks in upper and lower thirds. Butter 2 large baking sheets.

Squeeze handfuls of zucchini wrapped in a kitchen towel to remove moisture.

Whisk together flour, baking soda, spices, and salt until combined. Whisk together buttermilk and vanilla in a small bowl.

Beat together butter and brown sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add egg and beat until combined well.  At low speed, mix in flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately in batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture and mixing until smooth. Mix in zucchini until just incorporated.

Spoon 1/4-cup mounds of batter 2 inches apart on baking sheets.  (These spread A LOT so give the batter a lot of space.)  Bake, switching position of sheets halfway through, until tops are puffed and golden and spring back when touched, 18 to 22 minutes. Transfer with a spatula to a rack to cool completely.

Make filling: Beat together butter, confectioners sugar then add in the marshmallow fluff, and vanilla in a bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes.

Assemble pies: Spread a rounded tablespoon filling on flat sides of half of cakes and top with remaining cakes.

Cakes can be made 3 days ahead and kept, layered between sheets of wax paper, in an airtight container at room temperature.

Filling can be made 4 hours ahead and kept, covered, at room temperature. Refrigerate if you aren’t going to use it before then.

Marshmallow Fluff

Makes 2 cups

3 egg whites
2/3 cup sugar

Make a double boiler by bringing a small pot of water to a bare simmer, then place the bowl of your stand mixer, if you’ve got one, or another large stainless steel bowl atop the water. Add the egg whites and sugar, and whisk continuously until the sugar dissolves and the liquid is warm to the touch.

Transfer the bowl from the stovetop to your stand mixer (you’ll probably want to wipe the condensation from its bottom before securing), and use the whisk attachment to whip the liquid on medium-high speed until it turns glossy with stiff peaks, about 8 minutes. If you don’t have a stand mixer, do the same with your electric hand mixer.

Eat immediately or refrigerate for no more than a week.

crostini with zucchini pesto.

I gravitate towards zucchini at the market because they tend to get overlooked when presented next to gorgeous heirloom tomatoes and shinny eggplants (I always have strong feelings of affection towards the underdog).  But then I bring them home and I stare at them in frustration since I don’t know what to do with them.  So I revert to my default - roasted in the oven until they get a little charred and caramelized,  I serve it drizzled with good olive oil, aged balsamic vinegar, crumbled goat cheese, and a sprinkle of shredded basil and flaky sea salt.  It’s a perfectly delicious preparation but a completely unappealing option during a heat wave.  Who wants to roast something when you yourself are already roasting and dripping with sweat in the sweltering hot box you like to call your apartment?  So this week I am breaking up with my oven and eating ice cream for dinner (just kidding Mom!)

I spent a great deal of time finally going through the back log of recipes I save in e-mail folders, bookmark online, and tear out of magazines (can you tell I hoard much?) to find things that don’t involve much actual cooking (i.e. the dreaded oven).  During that search I stumbled upon this zucchini pesto which is a real gem of a recipe.  It involves summer produce! It doesn't involve cooking! I can eat it atop toasted bread! (Because everyone knows everything tastes better on  well toasted bread) It doesn't involve cooking!! (Just wanted to drive that point home in case you missed my level of enthusiasm the first time.)   After making this I came to the conclusion that raw zucchini is a completely under-appreciated thing.  It’s crunchy and sweet and when paired with toasted almonds, salty cheese, and fresh basil, it makes for an unusual and deeply satisfying pesto. 

Follow you crostini dinner with a big bowl of ice cream for dessert.  Heat wave be dammed. 

Crostini with Zucchini Pesto

Recipe adapted from Tasting Table

This pesto is addicting and makes for an incredible dinner on weeks where it is beyond hot out.  No oven involved! If you really wanted to avoid the stove you could not toast the bread, but the toasted bread provides an extra little crunch that is really lovely so I suggest it.  This pesto would be equally lovely a top grilled chicken breasts or salmon filets, or even pasta but I find the toast to be simply wonderful. 

Yields 6 appetizer servings  - about 12 – 18 crostini depending on the size of the bread

3 medium zucchini (about 1 pound) can use yellow or green

2 teaspoons salt plus more to taste

2 garlic cloves, minced

¼ cup shredded basil

½ cup marcona or regular almonds, toasted and finely chopped

Pinch of red pepper flakes

½ cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese

½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided

Freshly ground black pepper

1 loaf ciabatta or sourdough baguette cut into ¼ inch slices 

Using a box grater, coarsely grate the zucchini.  Place the shredded zucchini in the middle of a clean kitchen towel or cheese cloth and sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of salt.  Let sit for 5 minutes, then squeeze the towel to remove excess moisture.  Repeat until as much liquid as possible has been released, then transfer zucchini to bowl.  (Really squeeze!  You will be amazed at how much water comes out.)

Add the garlic, basil, almonds, red pepper flakes, cheese, lemon zest, lemon juice, and 3 tablespoons olive oil to the zucchini; toss to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper and refrigerate for an hour. 

Just before serving, drizzle the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the bread and grill or broil the bread until toasted, then let cool. 

Top each slice of bread with 2 to 3 tablespoons of the zucchini pesto (depending on the size of your toasts) and serve immediately. 

zucchini olive oil cake with lemon crunch glaze.

I am a huge lover of savory/sweet foods and dishes.  Ricotta drizzled with honey and cracked black pepper on toasted Italian bread, one of the simplest and best foods ever.  Bittersweet chocolate chip cookies sprinkled with flaky sea salt, I could eat an entire batch of them.  Rosemary ham, cheddar cheese, and strawberry jam, the perfect lunch sandwich.  I could go on and on about all the combinations I love.   The reason I love them so much is that the juxtaposition of savory and sweet brings out the best in each other. 

This juxtaposition is extremely evident in this zucchini olive oil cake.   (I’ll let you ponder all those ingredients in one cake for a minute.)  This cake is one of my hands down favorite cakes I have ever made (and I’ve made a lot of cakes in my life).  The olive oil gives a fruity earthiness to the cake and it keeps it incredibly moist.  The zucchini gives it a lovely texture and flavor and the nuts give it a lovely toasted crunch.  But for me the best part of this cake is the lemon glaze.  It transforms the whole thing from simple to special.  The sweet lemon glaze provides a sweet crunchy crust and it works perfectly with the olive oil.  Sweet and savory has never tasted so good.

Zucchini Olive Oil Cake with Lemon Crunch Glaze
Recipe from Gina Depalma’s Dolce Italiano

For the Cake

1 cup walnut pieces
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 large eggs
1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 ½ cups grated zucchini (about 2 small – and you can always add 3 cups!)

For the Lemon Glaze

¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 cup confectioners sugar

To make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and position the rack in the center.  Grease a 10 cup bundt pan (or a regular 9 inch cake pan) using nonstick spray or butter, then dust it with flour to coat it completely, tapping out excess flour.

Place the walnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast them until they are golden brown and aromatic, 12 to 14 minutes.  Cool the walnuts completely, then finely chop them in the food processor and set aside. 

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and spices into a medium bowl and set aside.  In an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the eggs, sugar, and olive oil together on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, then beat in the vanilla extract.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula after each addition.  Beat in the dry ingredients all at once on low speed until they are thoroughly combined, then switch the mixer to medium speed and mix for 30 seconds.  Beat in the zucchini and the walnuts on low speed until they are completely incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl. 

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with a spatula.  Bake the cake for 45 – 50 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time to ensure even browning.  The cake is done with the tester inserted in the center comes out clean and the cake has begun to pull away from the sides of the pan. 

While the cake is baking prepare the glaze: in a medium bowl, whisk together the lemon juice and granulated sugar, then whish in the confectioners sugar until the glaze is completely smooth. 

Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then carefully invert it onto a wire rack and then flip it onto another wire rack so the top of the cake which is nice and crusty is the part you glaze.  Using a pastry brush immediately brush the glaze over the entire surface of the warm cake, using all of the glaze; it will adhere to the cake and set as the cake cools.  Allow the cake to cool completely and the glaze to dry completely.  Enjoy!