It happens each year around the same time. Summer heat arrives and then – bam! – a bushel of zucchini lands on your doorstep, courtesy of a neighbor trying to offload their backyard bounty. 

Or, maybe zucchini is just one of those vegetables you have no idea how to cook.
Well, the good news is, you don’t even have to cook it; it’s great raw in many dishes. And because it kind of has a split personality, you can use it in everything from stir-fries to cupcakes.

Fruit or Vegetable?

Bright green zucchini squash is part of the gourd family. Along with its yellow cousin, the summer squash, it is considered both a fruit and a vegetable. The fact that zucchini contains seeds makes it a fruit, but it is used as a vegetable in most recipes.

How to Buy and Prepare Zucchini:

Look for zucchini that’s about 4-6 inches long, and looks firm and shiny with no breaks or cracks. Large, older fruit will be tough and bitter; the best way to use very large zucchini is in zucchini bread.

It can be kept in the fridge for up to one week. When you’re ready to use it, wash the zucchini, then slice both ends off. If the skin of the zucchini has been waxed (to extend its shelf-life), peel the skin, but leave the skin on if it’s unwaxed. Larger zucchini should be peeled first because the skin can be bitter. Golden zucchini blossoms, the flowers on the zucchini plant (pictured below), are also edible. They can be battered and deep-fried, baked, stuffed or used as a garnish for high-class dining!

Good For You, Too!

Zucchini is a great source of vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber. It’s high in water content, has only 20 calories per cup and is low in saturated fat and cholesterol.

Try it Raw or in these Recipes:

• Shred or grate raw zucchini into salads, or cut it into spears for vegetable platters.
• Grill it: Slice zucchini lengthwise, brush it with olive oil, sprinkle both sides with whatever fresh or dried herbs suit your fancy and some salt and pepper to taste. Grill outside on your barbecue or indoors on a grill pan for about 5 minutes on each side until crisp-tender.
• Chilled Zucchini-Basil Soup is the perfect starter for a hot summer night or an afternoon brunch. Make it ahead of time and dish it up right before serving. Add a sprig of fresh basil for a simple but beautiful presentation.
• The Italian version of an omelet, this Zucchini and Leek Oven-Baked Frittata is simple to prepare and versatile. It can be eaten hot or cold, taken to picnics, packed for lunches or served as an appetizer at your next brunch. Vary the herbs, meat and cheese and make it a main dish with a salad!
• Here's a super side dish: Sauteed Zucchini with Spinach and Basil Pesto. Whether you make or buy pesto, it’s great on just about any summer vegetable. This is also a good idea for your South Beach Diet friends! This link has lots of other recipe ideas for zucchini.
• Here's a kid-friendly recipe for Broiled Zucchini with Cheese. It’s got only three ingredients, and it will use up a lot of extra zucchini!
• A staff favorite from Food & Wine, Farfalle with Yogurt and Zucchini calls for just 5 ingredients, plus nutmeg. This fast pasta meal is made with yogurt, instead of cream, for a unique taste sensation.
• Remember the movie Ratatouille, where Chef Gusteau says, "Anyone can cook"? Well you can, too! One-Pan Ratatouille is as easy as it sounds! Bursting with flavor and color, this dish gets its beauty from both green and yellow squash, red, yellow and orange peppers, red tomatoes and green basil. Serve over pasta, tear open a loaf of rustic Italian bread and serve with a bottle of Chianti. Your company will love it!
• Chuck's Zucchini Bread Recipe makes two large loaves to eat or freeze. Make a batch of mini loaves to give to those wonderful neighbors that made that late-night zucchini delivery! You can't get much easier than this, and your kitchen will smell sweet and spicy!
• Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes are so moist, you don't need frosting. Scatter a few chocolate chips on top or dust them with powdered sugar and you're ready for a party! These cupcakes are so easy to make, you can put your heavy mixer away!

If you are new to startcooking, or are a regular visitor here, please consider subscribing for free.

Here are the top five most active posts on startcooking.com for the last two weeks!

Avocado Soup
How to Cook a Pork Roast
Chocolate Chip Cookies
12 Superfoods You Need to be Eating
How to Cook Corned Beef Brisket

If you are new to startcooking, or are a regular visitor here, please consider subscribing for free.

What is blanching?

In the spring and summer months, we’ve got a bounty of fresh, cheap vegetables to choose from. Blanching is a quick way to cook them while preserving that  peak crunch and taste. It involves partially cooking something by plunging it into boiling water for a short time, then “shocking” it in ice water to stop the cooking. To get started, check out Kathy’s step-by-step guide to blanching, and read on for more tips.

Why would I want to blanch something?

There are numerous good reasons!

• Blanching destroys the enzymes that turn green veggies brown and mushy over time or with cooking. This makes it perfect for preparing ingredients for recipes that rely on the bright green color, such as this risotto verde.
• It cooks vegetables “just enough” while still leaving them crisp and fresh-tasting. Blanched peas make this minty pea salad perfect for spring, while blanched carrots are delicious in a lemon dressing.
• Blanching removes bitter flavors in some vegetables, such as broccoli rabe.
• Blanching is a simple way to soften the skin of tomatoes for peeling; this method also works on soft fruits like peaches and plums.
• If you’re a vegetable gardener, you’ll want to blanch most kinds of vegetables before you freeze the surplus for the winter. Not only does blanching preserve the color and texture of your vegetables, but it will also preserve nutrient content.
• Blanching is an easy way to remove peels from nuts such as peanuts and almonds.
• To prepare vegetables for stir-frying, blanching is the perfect way to jump-start the cooking process, especially for dense vegetables like broccoli or cauliflower (which usually take a while to stir-fry and often get soggy). Scallop and snap pea stir fry sounds delicious when you know the peas will be perfectly crisp!
• Blanched vegetables are a nice change of pace in salads, like Salad Nicoise (pictured below), or in a vegetable and dip platter.

How do I do it?

Kathy explains the process in her guide to blanching, but here are a few more tips!

• In order to stop the enzyme action that breaks vegetables down, the food must reach 180 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Blanching will take up to a minute longer at high altitudes, since water boils at a lower temperature.
• The time spent in boiling water and time spent in ice water should be roughly equal. If you’re not able to prepare a cold immersion for your vegetables, putting them in a colander under cold running water will do.
• Adding salt or baking soda to your boiling water will help make green vegetables even greener! Steer clear of lemon juice or other acids, though; these will react with the chlorophyll and turn your greens brown.
• You need to use a lot of water. Use at least a gallon of water for each pound of food to be blanched. If you overload the water with vegetables, it will lower the water’s temperature and slow the cooking process, defeating the purpose.
• To blanch or not to blanch? This chart will help you decide whether to blanch your vegetables before freezing them for later, and gives you approximate blanching time for several different foods

If you are new to startcooking, or are a regular visitor here, please consider subscribing for free.