Currently viewing the tag: "summer squash"
This recipe takes my riff on the classic French peas cooked in lettuce as its inspiration. The squash stands in for the peas, and the trick is to not overcook the squash or it will turn mushy and bitter. The little bit of sugar helps with the flavors as well as helping get some color on the squash. This dish comes together quickly and is a boon when in a hurry or making something fancy on the other burners.
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Roasting concentrates the flavors of the squash and tomatoes, and adds sweetness as well.
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While good all summer long, this salad is brilliant with end of summer tomatoes and squash. Here the quickles are made with oregano, but you can use whatever herbs you have to hand. If you have chervil, or marjoram, or thyme, so be it. Use the herbs in the dressing to link to the squash. Feel free to gussy up the salad with a little crumbled goat’s milk cheese and pine nuts.
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These are nice to just have around in the refrigerator, ready to jump into a salad or sandwich, or just as a snack. You can change the shape of the cuts based on the shapes of the squash. Cube-ish shapes if you have a patty-pans, crook-necks, and typical stick shapes, or if you just have cylindrical zucchini shapes, just cut into quarters or halves, or leave whole then cut into ¼ inch slices. Just keep things to a ¼ inch thick and roughly all the same size so they change from “raw” to “pickled”.
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This is pretty much just what it says, a typical pico de gallo salsa, but made with summer squash rather than cucumbers, and scallions stand in for white or yellow onions, and mild sweet Gypsy peppers replace the typical jalapeño. Basil and lemon replace the cilantro and lime, making this an “alternate dimension” salsa fresca. If you like it hot, add a spicy chili or two or scatter some pizza-house chili flakes in.
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Tagged with: basil • green onions • Gypsy peppers • peppers • salsa • scallions • summer squash • tomatoes
Quite simple, but quite good. This is a versatile combination-cut the squash into different shapes, grill it just enough to cook through and chill it and dress it with cold dressing for a salad tossed with some romaine or Little Gem lettuce. Use mint instead of basil, and go Mid-East.
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This was made to go on a fried chicken sandwich, but is great as is. Using a Ben-Riner or other fixed blade slicer (or even a food processor) makes this a quick-fix dish.
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Simply flavored, easy to execute, simply delicious. Much of the secret lies in the thickness of the cut, and having fresh squash which are moist and not bitter. The rest lies with finding the sweet spot on the grill, where it is not scorchingly hot, nor where the heat is sort of feeble. The heat should be a 5-second heat, meaning it should take 5 seconds for your hand, 5 inches above the grill, to become painfully hot and you have to pull it away. This would be like medium-high on the stove.
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This is a Provençal inspired recipe with a twist. Some people find that summer squash has a subtly bitter flavor, which is unpleasant for them. This recipe plays that flavor up, and also counters it, by using caramelized sugar on the surface of the cuts on the squash. Caramelized sugar has both a bitter quality and sweetness, as do the squash. Costata Romanesco, Cousa, and tromboncini squash (look for this unusual squash at markets) all have firmer flesh than zucchini or crookneck, and can be seared and browned without getting mushy as quickly the latter. If using a mélange of these, add the zucchini and crooknecks later than the rest. These squash also pick up an almond-like nutty flavor when caramelized.
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A salad with some substance, and a good amount of crunch. If you can grill over wood, the salad will taste even better with a bit of smokiness. Be sure not to cook the squash and lettuce through. Your Little Gems just want some charring, and the squash wants only to be cooked until no longer raw and a bit charred outside. This salad could be a starter, part of a mezze/antipasti table, or buffed up with some other vegetables and some proteins to make for a light dinner.
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No meat in this, but the presentation, the thin slices, and the fact that it is raw make the connection in my mind. This is one of those times you want a fixed blade slicer. It can be done with a knife, but it will be a challenge. Cousa and zucchini are ideal for this dish, and Pattypan will work as well, but I think crooknecks are best left for other preparations. This dish lends itself to variations, from really simple to simple but elegant. The dressing can be scattered as separate ingredients or made into a vinaigrette, the garnish can be skipped or be complex-it’s all up to what you want at the time.
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All these vegetables come from the earthy funky side of the taste palette, so the orange juice adds a little sweet to act as a foil, and the soy sauce helps pull all the elements together. The fushimi and manganji peppers are Japanese heirloom chilies, and like shishito are not spicy. They taste like amplified versions of shishito, with the long and thin fushimi having a slight sweetness to it, while the fatter and all around bigger manganji has thicker walls give meatiness along with a full flavor that has subtle sweetness along with umami that I can only characterize as “green-ness”.
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A paean to late lasting summer bounty. Although the salad is like a lot of the Moroccan inspired ones posted before, this could be combined with lettuce if you wanted. It could also be piled onto toasted flat breads or grilled slabs of some crusty sturdy bread like a ciabatta or the like.
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Pistou is the French equivalent of pesto, but has no nuts or cheese. The cheese is added either to the soup or scattered over the soup at the end. This soup is only inspired and is not a true pistou, just in case any Provençal are reading this.
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Tagged with: carrots • cranberry shelling beans • filet beans • green beans • potatoes • rainbow carrots • San Marzano tomatoes • shelling beans • soup • summer squash • tomatoes • zucchini
For lack of a better word, this is called a “condiment”. It can be used as is to base or top grilled fish or chicken, or used with lettuce to make a salad with a bit more dressing. Add bits of buffalo mozzarella for a salad, or add capers for even more interest. Use Tetilla cheese or buffalo mozzarella and Marcona almonds as a topping for chicken, or mix with shreds of cabbage for a salad, or skip the cheese and use just the nuts.
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This salad is indeed inspired by traditional tabbouleh, and resulted from a hurried “tour du fridge” one night. For the cucumber, be sure to avoid any with waxed skin, or peel it, especially if the skin is thick. Smaller Japanese cucumbers are ideal. Any squash will do, but Costata Romanesco or Cousa are great because they take on color without getting mushy or bitter better than most other summer squash, and this salad is about the contrast between the chewy farro and the crisp cucumber and squash.
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This gratin is quite simple to assemble, and easier to cook. It can be assembled earlier in the day and then cooked, or you can cook it off and serve it at room temperature or re-heat it. It is even good cold. It makes a great vegetarian sandwich-just smear a soft roll with tapenade and lay in some of this gratin. This gratin is really fun if you have various colors of squash to play with as it yields a nice colorful dish. Although the instructions seem long, they are not really, and once you have done this you will find a hundred variations spring to mind.
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Although it says “Creamy” in the title, there is no cream, just a bit of yogurt for the smooth texture. You can, of course, skip the yogurt and the soup will still be quite good, if a little sweeter perhaps. The tomato adds acid and brightens the flavors of the soup, while adding liquid as well. As to seasoning, this soup is amenable to so many different herbs it makes this a truly versatile dish. The vegetable garnish is optional, so this can be a quick and simple dish as well.
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Although if pressed I’d call this a salad, but it is also pretty much a meal in itself. Lots of crunchy textures, sweet and savory flavors, fruity top notes (tomato) and earthy nuttiness (pepitas), all swathed in refreshing mint and parsley. Add some cheese, cold chicken, cold cuts, or pressed tofu to make it even more substantial.
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Tagged with: carrots • Italian parsley • nuts • salad • savoy cabbage • scallions • summer squash • tomatoes
For this dish low moisture content squash such as Costata Romanesco or Cousa are ideal, but you can do this with any summer squash, really. The trick is to merely sear the outside of the squash for flavor and color, not to cook it through. A fixed-blade slicer or mandolin is great for prepping this dish, otherwise use a thin bladed razor sharp knife to prevent the squash from cracking.
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These are inspired by Indian koftas, but they are more of a croquette in that they use egg and flour, not chickpea flour as many kofta recipes do. The bell pepper usage resulted from having halves in the refrigerator, and I think cooling bell peppers, mint, and yogurt make a wonderful contrast to the hot zucchini fritters. Serve these hot or room temperature, but be sure the yogurt is cold.
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This a colorful and aromatic dish that has plenty of crunch due to just cooking the vegetables lightly and quickly. The recipe lists shiso, which is a Japanese herb that usually shows up in sushi. If you do not have it, don’t worry, carry on without it. I used as it was in the garden, and it adds depth to the dish, but you won’t miss it if it is not there. Leftovers make a good cold salad as is, or you could lightly dress it with a little white balsamic vinaigrette.
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There is almost always a jar of tapenade in the refrigerator, just as there should be one in yours. It is like a magic wand in the kitchen, able to take disparate ingredients and turn them into a trip to far off lands. To get the right kind of sear on this dish, you want to use your biggest pan, like a 14-incher. If the vegetables are too close they will just steam and get mushy, so if you do not have a big pan, do this in a couple pans or batches.
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Tagged with: basil • cherry tomatoes • filet beans • lemon • parsley • Purplette onions • saute • summer squash • tapenade
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