שבועות 2013 Shavuot

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A recipe – Amalya’s Zucchinis (Cooked Zucchinis with Eggs)

When I was a teenager my home was occupied by my parents, my 2 sisters and 3 dogs. Amalya, the female boxer dog was full of personality and funny behavior. She would sleep with her tongue out of her mouth, she would chase cats in the yard like she was a hunter in the jungle.

And she had weird food preferences. She liked grapes and watermelon, she loved sitting on a chair next to the table like a human being, and more than anything – she LOVED cooked zucchini with eggs.

My mother used to cook this dish quite often even though we didn’t really like it, and the only one who ate it was Amalya. Over the time the dish got its nickname: Amalya’s Zucchinis.

It might not sound so tasty, and it might not look so tasty, but it is really good!

Ingredients (for 2 people)

1 small onion - chopped

2 zucchinis (better to use the light green ones) – cut into small cubes

2 cloves of garlic - chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 egg - whisked

Salt & pepper

Directions

1.     Heat the oil in a wide saucepan; add the onion and garlic and fry while stirring until golden.

2.     Add the zucchinis and stir for 2 minutes.

3.     Cover the saucepan, low the heat and cook until the zucchini becomes soft.

4.     If needed, add a little bit of water.

5.     Add the egg while stirring and cook for a few seconds until the egg is cooked.

6.     Serve as a side dish with rice or as an appetizer with toasted bread

A recipe – Pasta with Young Zucchini

The funny thing about pasta recipes is that it takes longer to write the recipe than to cook it!

For this recipe I have two “rules”:

1.     Food that is cut in the same shape is more esthetic. I mean, if we use penne pasta, it is better to cut the zucchini in the same way – 2 inches long, in thin strips. If we want to add some vegetables to rice, it is better to cut them to small cubes. It applies to salads, cooked food, desserts – everything. Try it!

2.     Zucchinis are so tasty raw, and they cook so fast. So to keep the zucchinis fresh and not too soft (or even mashed…), buy the small green zucchinis. I know that it is not acceptable and maybe even rude in supermarkets here, but check they are hard. Just squeeze them slightly. We do that in Israel all the time. You can’t buy fruits and vegetables just from looking at them.

Ingredients

Whole-wheat Penne or Tagliatelle pasta (amount for 2 people)

6 medium green zucchinis – thin slices

3 cloves of garlic

Freshly squeezed juice from - 1/2 lemon

A small bunch fresh basil leave

Salt and pepper

Olive oil

Freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

1.     Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the pasta in boiling the water for 8-10 minutes or until done; drain and wash immediately with cold water (to stop the cooking process).

Meanwhile:

2.     Chop the garlic and sauté in olive oil for few seconds.

3.     Add the zucchinis and stir gently for 2 minutes. Add the lemon, salt and pepper and cook for 2 more minutes.

4.     Add the pasta to the zucchinis and then add the basil leave.

5.     Stir all together just to mix all the taste.

6.     Serve with grated Parmesan.