BRATTLEBORO — August is a magnificent month for many reasons, not the least of which is that the zucchini crop seems still controllable.
An early-morning search in the garden, gingerly parting those large prickly leaves, produces delicate green fingers of squash, a smattering of glorious buttery blossoms with not a late-season monster in sight.
Zucchini grow at an alarming rate. Those lovely blossoms can turn into 8-inch fruit in just a few days. If you are slow to pick them, you end up with a garden full of torpedoes. A web search for “largest zucchini ever grown” identifies one that weighs in at 65 pounds. That's a lot of zucchini bread.
Many of our mothers served up all varieties of summer squash in bland, overcooked, mushy mounds whose tepid, watery residue would run all over the plate into the mashed potatoes. Generations of squash haters were thus created.
I propose to lure them back.
Harvested while still young and tender, zucchini and its cousins - the pattypan and yellow summer squash - have more than enough culinary potential and tender sweet flavor to reign supreme in the late-summer kitchen.
Summer squash is delicious when combined with fresh herbs, which are themselves just now coming into their own, or with the addition of a few early tomatoes, a smattering of scallions, and some basics like pasta, eggs, and cheese.
Summer begs simplicity. No one wants to spend hours in the kitchen when the sun is shining and the outdoors is calling, so summer foods should focus on the ingredient, not some fancy combination of flavors.
Dinner should be easy to make; at the same time, it should showcase the beauty of the produce we or our neighbor farmers have worked so hard to grow.
So here are five simple recipes that will make even the most skeptical among you a believer. These recipes are made to feed two people (adjust accordingly for more), and they use uncomplicated ingredients that can all be put together from start to finish in less than 45 minutes.
Pasta with summer squash and zucchini
The other night, the refrigerator yielded some squash - a great base for a simple and delicious pasta dish. There was a bowl of cherry tomatoes on the counter and scallions in the garden, as well as basil and mint.
Squash does have a high water content, so they need to be sliced thinly and cooked down to evaporate some of the liquid they throw off.
Put on a pot of water to boil for the pasta.
Dice 3 scallions or 1 small onion.
Wash 2 small yellow summer squash and 2 small zucchini. Halve lengthwise, then slice into thin half moons.
Halve ½ cup of cherry tomatoes.
Wash and dry ½ cup of basil leaves and ¼ cup of mint leaves.
Over medium low heat in a medium sauté pan, melt 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Put in the scallions or onion, then cook until soft. Add the squash and the tomatoes, plus a dash of salt and pepper.
Lower the heat and cook, covered, around 7 to 12 minutes. Stir occasionally. Keep cooking, stirring and lifting the cover to see if the liquid is becoming a bit thicker. You are going for a creamy, slightly homogenous mixture that will have a varied texture with various sized pieces of squash, the tomatoes, and the onion.
Make sure the pan is just barely simmering and add a bit more water if there is any threat of burning.
Meanwhile, cook 2 ounces of whatever dry pasta you have in the cupboard. 1 ounce of dry pasta will yield ½ cup of cooked.
Cut the herbs into thin ribbons.
When the pasta is done to your liking, drain it and add it to the pan with the vegetables. Cook gently for a minute, tossing everything so that the pasta is coated with sauce. Take it off the heat and toss again with the herbs, then add salt and pepper to taste.
If you want to add some protein, ½ cup of crumbled feta doesn't do this dish any harm at all.
Stuffed pattypans
Pattypans, with their scalloped spaceship shape, are the adorable member of the squash family. They make terrific receptacles for all sorts of savory ingredients.
Serve with the tops placed jauntily ajar and accompany with a fresh salad and some sliced tomato.
Find two perfect specimens of pattypan squash, each about 3 inches in diameter. Wash and dry them, then cut off the tops and scoop out the interior, leaving ¼ to ½ inch attached to the shell.
De-seed and dice the innards, then set aside.
Preheat the oven to 375 F. Brush the squash and the tops with a bit of olive oil and put them on a baking sheet, cut side up.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, until you can pierce the flesh easily with a sharp knife. Remove them from the oven, but leave them on the baking sheet.
In a small pan, sauté until tender: 1 diced shallot, 1 diced clove of garlic, and the innards that you removed earlier.
Add 2 tablespoons of chopped dill, and spoon this mixture into the squash shells, distributing it equally.
Top each squash with a few tablespoons of grated cheese. Tamp it all down, then break a fresh egg over the cheese.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the white is cooked but the yolk is still jiggly.
Lemon-marinated squash salad
This next recipe is a bit of a cheat on the 45-minutes rule, in that it is put together quickly but needs around 4 hours in the refrigerator before serving.
The result is cold, refreshing, and lemony, full of the fresh flavors of summer. If you can plan ahead, I highly recommend this dish as a light and delicious accompaniment to a summer cookout.
You will need ½ to ¾ pound of any variety, or a mixed variety, of unpeeled small summer squash. Wash and trim them, then shave them lengthwise into really thin, long ribbons. One of those inexpensive Japanese mandoline slicers is the best tool for the task, but a wide vegetable peeler will work as well.
Sprinkle the ribbons with ½ teaspoon salt, and let them sit on paper towels for about 15 minutes to drain. This step helps to get rid of all the water that can make squash soggy, giving it a bad name.
Gently blot the squash, being careful not to tear the ribbons, and put them in a medium bowl. Mix the juice of 1 lemon, 1 crushed garlic clove, and 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil.
Gently toss this mixture into the squash.
Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours. The acid in the lemon actually “cooks” the squash, allowing it to soften and soak up the tasty marinade.
When ready to serve, remove the garlic clove, and add 2 tablespoons of finely minced mint and dill, or parsley/basil/marjoram if you prefer.
Zucchini boats with tomato and cheese
Here is another ridiculously tasty and simple way to use up those unfairly maligned squash. With a salad of bitter greens, a loaf of great bread, and a glass of rosé, this meal is a short trip to the Amalfi coast.
Pre-heat the oven to 400 F.
Take 2 small zucchini - the Italian Romesco ribbed variety works well here - and slice them in half lengthwise. Scrape out the seeds, leaving the squash like little shallow boats, and put them on a small baking sheet.
In a small bowl, combine 8 diced cherry tomatoes with 2 tablespoons of minced fresh oregano and a splash of red-wine vinegar.
Drain off any excess liquid and mound this mixture inside your little boats. Tear a ball of high-quality mozzarella and scatter these on top of the tomato.
Bake for 20 minutes. If you prefer the tops crispy, place the baking sheet under the broiler for a few minutes until the cheese is bubbly and brown.
Fried zucchini blossom
Speaking of Italy, the piatto forte of squash cucina is the fried zucchini blossom. If you have never had the pleasure of eating one, and this column provides the opportunity, you will have made me the happiest of cooks.
Zucchini blossoms come in male and female, just like us, and for the same reason. The male pollen fertilizes the female blossoms, and a zucchini is born, so to speak.
Either blossom can be fried, but if you want to practice zucchini birth control, use the female blossoms. (They don't have pollen, and the flowers grow atop a fruit instead of on a simple stem.) Gather them early in the morning before the sun gets hot, and use them that same day.
Fried zucchini blossoms must be eaten immediately after they are done, so plan your time accordingly.
You can keep the picked blossoms in the refrigerator for a day, stored loosely inside a plastic bag in the veggie drawer. I gently shake the blossoms upside down to dislodge any small bugs that might be hidden inside.
This recipe uses 12 blossoms. I use a 12-inch pan and cook 6 blossoms at a time.
I fry in a mixture of 75 percent canola oil and 25 percent olive oil. The olive oil gives flavor, but the canola oil gets hotter before it starts smoking, so the combination works well.
Serve piping hot and crispy with a small wedge of lemon.
Gently remove the female pistils or the male stamen from the inside of the flowers, but leave some stem to give you something to hold onto when you dip the blossoms into batter.
Pour 8 ounces of cold seltzer or club soda into a medium bowl, and whisk in a scant 1 cup of unbleached white flour and ½ teaspoon of salt until just this side of smooth.
Heat 2 inches of oil to 350 degrees on a deep fry thermometer in a large, cast-iron fry pan with sides. If your stove has an exhaust fan, now's the time to use it!
When the oil is hot, take each blossom and, holding onto the stem, quickly dip it into the batter, shake off the excess, and lay it in the oil. Don't crowd the pan.
It should take just a couple of minutes for one side to get brown. Carefully flip the blossoms and cook the other side, then remove them to a paper towel. Salt them while hot!
* * *
If picked when small and handled simply, summer squash deliver a more subtle reward than other August harvests, Their quiet and pure flavor should not be belittled.
We can reserve those late-season monsters for someone else's zucchini bread.