Zucchini 101

As I was looking up zucchini recipes in our old cookbooks, then online, I realized that if you've never grown these green bad boys you might not get the jokes. On the other hand, if you have grown zucchini you know that one day you'll be wondering when you can pick the first one, and the next day be going from door to door trying to give away baskets of extra zucchini.

For those of you who haven't had that experience, here's a quick look at how it happens. Roll your cursor over the picture to see my very unscientific test. The pictures are taken about 24 hours apart.

Although the zuc didn't double in size overnight—which is what is seems like they do—it's still quite a bit bigger.

By the way, my high-tech measuring instrument is a copy of the Funny Times, the world's greatest newspaper, especially in these days when the other papers are filled with doom & gloom.

For an idea of how zucchini can grow this fast, take a look at the bush they grow on. It's higher than my waist (I'm 5' 10") and has tons of huge leaves. Almost all of them are angled to the south, and track the sun all day. So what we have is a highly efficient array of solar collectors that channel their energy into to green tubular objects growing near the base of the plant.

They do the job so well that the kitchen counter soon fills up with zucchini, and you're desperately trying to figure out what to do with it.

Here's a recipe I tried yesterday that was very tasty and fairly easy. Slicing the zuc and grating the corn took some time, putting it together was a breeze, then you go back to the Funny Times while it bakes. The corn adds sweetness, the onion and chili powder a bit of a bite, and the tomato sauce some tang.

Baked Zucchini and Corn (from Women's Day Encyclopedia of Cooking)

3 ears of corn (I used 4)
1 lb. unpeeled zucchini, thinly sliced (I used one medium zucchini)
1 medium onion, thinly sliced (I used more, I love onion)
1/4 cup butter, melted (I used less and added olive oil)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper (fresh-ground is best)
1 teaspoon chili powder (next time I'll use 2)
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce (I used Prego spaghetti sauce)

Grate corn kernels from cob. Mix corn and remaining ingredients except sauce. Put in greased shallow 1-1/2 qt. baking dish. Pour sauce over top. Bake, uncovered, in preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. Makes 6 servings.

Oh, almost forgot: I sprinkled grated Cheddar cheese on top, then mixed it in a bit before baking. A good addition, I think.

Share your favorite zucchini recipe by clicking on "Add/read comments" below.

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