Unique Ways to Serve Zucchini: Boats and Toppers

Did you ever think of the zucchini as an interesting squash? It's big, it's green, and it's eatable. What is so interesting about that, right? The zucchini has been traced clear back to 7000 BC and originated in Mexico. When the zucchini was introduced in Italy, they called it zucchino. The French and English call it courgette.

No matter what name each nationality give the zucchini, it is still known for being a great source of vitamins and minerals. It contains both vitamin A and vitamin C. The zucchini also is a good source of minerals. They also have a 95% water content so they are good for those watching their calorie intake. Since the zucchini has such few calories, you can cheat and add a few good things to it!

Zucchini as a Main Dish

A zucchini is very versatile. It can be anything from lunch, dinner or dessert depending on how it is cooked or served. Cook books are full of variations on using it as pasta or as a filler. I like to experiment and find ways that are not in the cookbook. At least not any I have seen. Here are a couple of ideas for you to try.

Baked Zucchini Boat: This is pretty simple yet makes a delicious main dish. Slice a medium sized zucchini lengthwise. You will need half a zucchini per person, so halve as many as you need to serve your family.

Scoop the seeds out of the center using a large spoon. Discard the seeds are save them for baking later. Place several pats of thinly sliced butter down the length of the hollowed out boat. Sprinkle the some brown sugar over the butter. I use about ¼ cup per boat. Use more or less depending on your taste.

Chop up enough really ripe tomatoes to layer into the boat. Bake the zucchini boats on a cookie sheet until they are tender and the tomatoes are soft. Just before serving the zucchini boats, sprinkle on some Parmesan cheese, grated cheddar or some bacon bits. For meat lovers: Chop up cooked ham, turkey or chicken and add it to your zucchini boat before you put in the tomatoes.

Zucchini as a Salad Topper

Cut a medium sized zucchini lengthwise. Scoop the seeds out with a large spoon. Shred the zucchini with a hand shredder. I use a small holed shredder, but you can shred it to whatever substance you desire. I medium zucchini should yield about 3 cups of shredded zucchini.

Place the shredded zucchini into a bowl that has a tight fitting lid. Add about 2 teaspoons of chives, ¼ cup Parmesan cheese and ¼ cup Italian dressing. Stir this all up and allow it to sit in the sealed bowl overnight to distribute the flavors.

Use this zucchini salad topper on top of a lettuce salad, potato salad, tuna salad, chicken salad or even serve it by itself. To make it a little fancier, place a lettuce leaf on a plate, add a scoop of the zucchini salad topper to it and place a sliced tomato on top. Sprinkle it with grated cheese and you have a fancy salad to serve!