“If you have two zucchini plants, you have too many…”
At this point in the summer, if you have two or more zucchini plants, you may have too many! Now that they are producing, and producing, and producing, what do you do with all this produce? You can only leave so many of the darned things so many times on your neighbors’ porches. What’s an overwhelmed gardener to do?
Fortunately, besides the obvious eating them raw as a snack or in a salad, or baking zucchini bread, there are numerous other ways to eat this versatile vegetable!
Whip up a superb soup – great served hot or cold.
Make zucchini patties. They’re a great meat substitute! Make a zucchini patty sandwich. Add patties to omelets. Use them to make zucchini parmesan. OR, eat the patties instead of potatoes or rice.
Use your bigger specimens to make zucchini boats. Bake a breakfast, brunch or dinner casserole, with or without meat.
Grill it. Add it to pasta.
Add zucchini to baked goods like brownies for extra fiber and nutrition. But, don’t stop at breads and cakes. Make zucchini or “zapple” pie (looks and tastes like apple pie; if you don’t tell, no one else will know!).
Another option, of course, is to share your extra produce with more than just your family, friends, and neighbors. Take some to one of our local food banks and/or the warming center.
Lastly, leave one on the vine an extra week or two. Make sure to enter it in our Northern Gila County Fair. You may have a blue-ribbon winner!
Bon appetit!
