Zucchini Recipes

Here are some recipes for zucchini. Please add your recipes, too, because I'm running out of ideas!

Stuffed Zucchini

4 medium zucchini, about 8 inches
1/2 cup uncooked long grain rice
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 medium green, pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 Tbsp. butter
3/4 cup canned bean sprouts, rinsed, drained and chopped
1/2 cup chopped cabbage
1/4 cup chopped fresh mushrooms
1-1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt (I don't use because of the sodium in the soy sauce)
Dash pepper
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
1/4 cup sliced almonds

Cut zucchini in half lengthwise; scoop out and discard pulp, leaving a 1/4-inch shell. Place, cut-side down, in a baking dish. Fill dish with hot water to a depth of 1/4 inch. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside. Cook the rice according to package directions.

In a skillet, saute onion, green pepper and garlic in butter until tender. Stir in the bean sprouts, cabbage, mushrooms cooked rice, soy sauce, salt, and pepper. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, about 5 minutes.

Spoon into zucchini shells; sprinkle with cheese, then sprinkle with sliced almonds. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees or 20-15 minutes or until cheese is melted. Makes 8 servings.
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Savory Summer Squash

1 small zucchini, julienned
1 small yellow summer squash, julienned
1 medium tomato, diced
3 Tbsp. finely chopped onion
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

In a skillet, saute the zucchini, squash, tomato and onion in oil for 1 minute. Sprinkle with seasonings. Cook 5-7 minutes longer or until vegetables are tender. Serve with a slotted spoon. Makes 2 servings.
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Zucchini Dessert Squares

Pastry:
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups cold butter

Filling:
8 to 10 cups cubed seeded peeled zucchini (4 to 5 pounds)
2/3 cup lemon juice
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Cut in butter until crumbly; reserve 3 cups. Pat remaining crumb mixture into a greased 13- x 9-inch baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 12 minutes.

Meanwhile, for filling, place zucchini and lemon juice in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook for 6-8 minutes or until zucchini is crisp-tender. Stir in the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg; cover and simmer for 5 minutes (mixture will be thin).

Spoon over crust; sprinkle with the reserved crumb mixture. Bake at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until golden. Makes 16-20 servings.
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Pineapple Zucchini Bread

3 eggs
2 cups finely shredded zucchini
1 cup vegetable oil
1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple, drained
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup chopped nuts
1 cup raisins, optional

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, zucchini, oil, pineapple and vanilla. Combine the dry ingredients; stir into egg mixture just until moistened. Fold in nuts and raisins if desired.

Pour into two greased 8 x 4-inch loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool. Makes 2 loaves.
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Zucchini Garden Chowder

2 medium zucchini, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/3 cup butter, cubed
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3 cups water
3 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
Pinch sugar, optional
Additional minced fresh parsley, optional

In a Dutch oven or soup kettle, saute the zucchini, onion, parsley and basil in butter until vegetables are tender. Stir in the flour, salt and pepper. Gradually stir in water. Add the bouillon and lemon juice; mix well. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.

Add tomatoes, milk and corn; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 5 minutes or until corn is tender.

Just before serving, add cheeses; stir until melted. Add sugar and garnish with parsley if desired. Makes 8-10 servings (about 2-1/2 quarts).

My note: I use 3 cups of chicken broth instead of 3 cups water and the bouillon cubes because those cubes are loaded with salt.
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Zucchini Pancakes

1/3 cup biscuit/baking mix
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups shredded zucchini
2 tablespoons butter

In a large bowl, combine the biscuit mix, cheese, pepper and eggs just until blended. Add the zucchini and mix well.

In a large skillet, melt butter. Drop batter by about 1/3 cupfuls into skillet; press lightly to flatten. Fry until golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side. Makes 5 pancakes.
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Zucchini Salsa - perfect for brats, sausages, hot dogs, etc.

5 cups shredded zucchini (about 5 medium)
4 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
2 medium onions, chopped
2 medium green peppers, chopped
1 small sweet red pepper, chopped
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 cup white vinegar
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 teaspoons ground mustard
2-1/4 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon each ground cumin, nutmeg and turmeric
1/2 teaspoon pepper

In a Dutch oven, combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 40-50 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally.
Cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until chilled. Serve with your favorite snack chips or grilled meats. Makes 7 cups.
My note: I recommend wearing disposable gloves when cutting any hot peppers.

This is on my list and we're making it this week! It looks delicious! Thanks!

I never thought about trying to dry tomatoes in the oven. If ours ever ripen (they're sitting on the vines just as green as can be), I'm going to try that. We love sun-dried tomatoes so much. One of my GFs had said that I could use her dehydrator last year, but then when I could have used it, they went on vacation. If the oven works, that's good enough for me.

Hey Erica, trade you some zucchini for some of those amazing lemons!

Chocolate zucchini bread....I am there! And I really want to try that recipe from Allrecipes for the lemon zucchini bread (with the blueberries, of course).

Here's a recipe for zucchini relish if anybody is interested. I thought is was a relish, but it's a salsa. I want to try it as it sounds delicious.

Zucchini Salsa

5 cups shredded zucchini (about 5 medium)
4 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
2 medium onions, chopped
2 medium green peppers, chopped
1 small sweet red pepper, chopped
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 cup white vinegar
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 teaspoons ground mustard
2-1/4 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon each ground cumin, nutmeg and turmeric
1/2 teaspoon pepper

In a Dutch oven, combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 40-50 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally.

Cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until chilled. Serve with your favorite snack chips or grilled meats. Yield: 7 cups.
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And Erica, how about this? It calls for grape tomatoes, but I've made it with halved cherry tomatoes. It's good. It's from my Healthy Cooking 2009cookbook.

Warm Garlicky Grape Tomatoes

2 cups grape tomatoes (halve some cherry tomatoes instead)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1-1/2 teaspoons minced fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon salt-free garlic seasoning blend
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil, divided
1/4 cup soft whole wheat bread crumbs
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

In a small bowl, combine the tomatoes, garlic, basil, seasoning blend, salt and pepper. Add 1/2 teaspoon oil; toss to coat. Transfer to a 3-cup baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Combine bread crumbs and remaining oil; sprinkle over the top. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake 5-10 minutes longer or until cheese is softened and tomatoes are tender. Yield: 4 servings.

One of my GFs makes something like this when they come for dinner. It's just delicious. Thanks for the recipe!

I know! I swear that those things magically appear in the garden! Rick and I were in the garden the other night picking beans and looking for zucchini. There were no zucchini to be had....tons of flowers, but no zucchini. Last night? Two giant zucchinis! Those things were like clubs! Where did they come from?

I made the Zucchini Salsa last night (with my two clubs ). Oh gosh, so good! It's a salsa, so it has the cumin and the jalapeno. It doesn't taste like a relish, but I thought it was wonderful stuff. It will be delicious on grilled brats. (Sometimes I add pickle relish to my dressings for potato salad and macaroni salad and I'm tempted to try to add the salsa the next time I make it, just to see how it would taste.) I wish I could freeze this stuff; it would be nice to be able to keep it, but the recipe says to keep it in the fridge.

I still haven't had time to make that bread. Hopefully I'll get some made this coming weekend.

calico2222, that chowder is really delicious!

Thank goodness for the food processor! I'd go crazy if I had to chop all that zucchini all the time!

Here's a recipe that I'm thinking about trying....it's from The Amish Cook at Home cookbook and it's for Freezer Pickles. I'm always interested in good recipes for the freezer and I've never found one for freezer pickles. The recipe takes 3 days from start to finish.....

Freezer Pickles

2 quarts sliced cucumbers
2 tablespoons. salt
1 large onion (sliced)
1-3/4 cups sugar
½ cup vinegar

Put cucumbers, onion, and salt in a large bowl and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Drain well. Mix sugar and vinegar (that's the Syrup) and pour over pickles. Cover and refrigerate for 24 more hours.

Drain the pickles, but save the Syrup. Pack into freezer boxes. Pour the Syrup from the bowl of pickles over the pickles in the containers and freeze. These are really good and crisp.

Nice, Mooch! Those are wonderful looking loaves of bread! How many is that? Twelve? What are you going to do with all of them? Are they all for the freezer or will you give some loaves away? They all look incredible!

Your little girl is a sweetie! She's so impressed with the zucchini! They are huge things, aren't they?

I love to see pictures of kitchens and baking. Thanks so much!

Yepper, you're right! I try to be careful when using the "clubs" for those reasons. I did cut into a club and found it to be very fibrous and I threw it in the garbage....I didn't know they floated!

We've been trying to pick them at right around 8 inches or so, about the size I'd find in the grocery store. But I'm telling you, those buggers hide....and they hide well!