In Season: Fresh Zucchini Recipes

It’s a well-burnished chestnut: Don’t leave your car doors unlocked in July lest your neighbor fill the back seat with fresh-picked zucchini. These prolific gourds are the overachievers of the summer garden, and countless recipe columns have been devoted to their use in savory tarts, casseroles, tarts, cakes, and soups. My mom makes the zucchini equivalent of tater tots by dipping slices in egg and seasoned bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese, then roasting them until they turn deep brown and crunchy. Perfection.

But if you’re looking for a main dish to serve with a nice salad on the side, it’s hard to beat stuffed zucchini. Fillings are highly adaptable and not a bit of squash goes to waste. The filling here is classic: a mixture of zucchini, sausage (meat or vegan), onion, garlic, a little lemon, bread crumbs. Oh, and sun-dried tomatoes. After the entire country overdosed on them in the ’80s and ’90s, these “gourmet” pantry staples were banished from respectable society. Now, their exile is over. This is a good thing: They add tang and an umami-like savoriness to all kinds of dishes.

For dessert: a chocolate-zucchini cake slathered with chocolate frosting. You don’t taste the zucchini, just the chocolate, but the zucchini does create a very moist crumb. Some people add chopped walnuts or chocolate chips to their loaves, but I kept it simple here with just a dash of cinnamon. Adapt as you wish.

Fresh Zucchini Recipes:

Stuffed Zucchini

Chocolate-Zucchini Cake