Off the Urban Grid

Garden Fresh Zucchini: Turn This Fruit into Several Meals

A backyard garden is simply the best possible investment you can make this year, because as long as it’s taken care of properly, you can reap the rewards and spend less at the grocery store. In order to effectively take advantage of homegrown vegetables, it’s important to have meal plans in mind. For example, when your tomatoes ripen or your squash is ready to harvest, it’s beneficial to put it all to good use or at least preserve it so nothing goes to waste. When it comes to zucchini, there are various dishes that will nourish your family and please their taste buds.

Zucchini is a beautiful dark green fruit, and it’s considered a small summer squash. This squash is rich in folate, potassium and vitamin A, but it’s low in calories. Fortunately, for gardeners and farmers, it’s easy to grow in temperate climates, and for cooks, it can be turned into a variety of meals. To get you started below are some ideas.

Of course, there is delicious zucchini bread. Although it’s bready, it’s a healthier comfort food in comparison to white bread, and you can always bulk up the nutrition and flavor with walnuts, poppy seeds and lemon zest. To make it into a dessert, you can eat it with a scoop of ice cream.

Speaking of comfort food, you can also incorporate this squash into homemade pasta. If you have fresh tomatoes from the garden, you can make your own sauce too. Then all you need is the eggs, flour, salt, olive oil, parmesan cheese and zucchini. Or bake them in the oven for a new take on pizza.

Another easy way to make and enjoy zucchini is to put it in the frying pan. Sautéing it with other vegetables or by itself can add color to brown rice. All you need is a little lemon or salt and pepper, and you will have a healthy meal.

During the summer, zucchini is tasty right off of the grill. You can create rainbow shish kabobs with zucchini, yellow squash, cherry tomatoes, onions, green peppers, etc.

These different types of zucchini-enhanced meals will ensure that you put all of your squash to good use.

Tags: garden zucchini, squash, zucchini bread, zucchini meals