Last week one of The Wife’s friends contacted their mommy group asking if anyone would like to help them eat a bumper crop of veggies from their home garden. After I asked what sort of veggies we’d be receiving and finding out that it would be mostly cukes and zukes, I began thinking about what I wanted to make with those items.
When the pile of veggies were delivered, I found that it included about 6+ lbs of zucchini, way more than I thought I could safely deal with. So I set about finding some recipes which could utilize this large amount of zucchini and still be really tasty meals/desserts. The first thing I found were Garden Zucchini Cakes from Once a Month Mom. Mrs. Marcos originally recommended this site to me and I have only keep up with it for the random recipes like this one. The result wasn’t terribly difficult to make but I couldn’t quite place their familiar taste. Thankfully The Wife was able to pin it down: “It tastes like stuffing,” she said.
The second thing I came up with were Zucchini Turkey Pepperoni Pizzas. I sliced the largest of the squash about 3/4″ thick and broiled them for a bit until they were cooked. I added Muir Glen pizza sauce, turkey pepperoni, and cheese before putting them back under the broiler to finish. They were surprisingly good and it was something I’d make again.
The final thing we made was a recipe I pulled out of the book of family favorites my mother compiled for me several years ago, Zucchini-Carrot Cake. A personal favorite of mine growing up and one that would use up both the carrots and zucchini we had in the house. While we had most of the ingredients on hand we did have to go out for margarine (I probably could have used butter but stuck to the recipe) and cream cheese.
Zucchini-Carrot Cake
Ingredients
2 eggs
1 c sugar
2/3 c oil
1 ¼ c flour
1tsp of baking powder, baking soda & cinnamon
½ tsp salt
1 c grated carrot
1 c grated zucchini
½ c chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
3 oz pkg cream cheese at room temperature
3 tbps margarine
1 tsp vanilla
2 c powdered sugarDirections
Beat eggs with sugar. Gradually beat in oil. Mix flour with baking powder, soda, cinnamon, salt, stir into oil mixture. Beat 3-4 minutes. Stir in carrot, zucchini and nuts. Pour into a greased 9 inch pan. Bake in a preheated 350 oven about 25 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched or toothpick inserted into center comes out clean,
Frosting
Beat cream cheese with margarine, beat in sugar and vanilla. Spread over cooled cake.
We doubled the cake recipe but kept the frosting the same. Layered it over both cakes and made a pretty final product that tastes quite good. Even with a breastfeeding Wife in the house, it lasted several days and made for a very happy family.
What do you do with bumper garden crops either grown by yourself or your family/friends? Are there any favorite recipes of yours which you use for veggies which you may not be abe to use in more traditional ways? How about zucchini recipes? Whatever you have to say about this one go ahead and comment on as I’d love to hear your thoughts.
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August 14th, 2012 at 8:58 am
I stopped reading this post at the words “mommy group”.
August 14th, 2012 at 9:11 am
lefty, I figured you’d be all over that. Oh sorry, you’re into GILFs at your age.
August 14th, 2012 at 9:17 am
Yep, also. Maxim cover models.
Go change a diaper.
August 14th, 2012 at 10:30 am
Chocolate zucchini cake, with a dash of cayenne pepper.
August 14th, 2012 at 11:07 am
Some of my worst memories as a child were the times when my parents or more likely great grand parents tried to feed me something called “cake” or “brownies” or “jello salad” only to taste some concoction containing vegetables.
Sorry, can’t do veggies in cakes. It just isn’t right. But I’m sure my dad would love that cake.
August 14th, 2012 at 1:09 pm
Bill I want to echo the sentiment of a poster on the Lone Oak Grill thread, you have a talent at taking pictures of food.
Looks good, Carrot cake is all about the sourcream frosting IMHO>
We didnt do zucchini this year in our garden but the harvest of just about everything has been outstanding… my sig other has been slow roasting heirloom tomatoes with outstanding results… used for pasta, add to sauteed vegetables , or to rice , or even as a garnish on grilled pork or beef or chicken.
anyone have a good recipe for collard greens?… they are like weeds.
August 14th, 2012 at 3:26 pm
mulch, when it comes to southern cooking, I trust overweight southern cooks. AKA Paula Deen. Here’s a link: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/collard-greens-recipe/index.html
Her shrimp and grits recipe is also outstanding.
Bill, that cake looks great.
August 14th, 2012 at 3:31 pm
Zuchinni lasagne is one of my favorites. Use sliced zuchinni and other fresh veggies instead of the noodles and meat – very light tomato sauce with some non fat ricotta cheese and other fresh veggies as available. I got some cucumbers from someone at church last week and mixed them with green peppers and fresh tomatoes from my planters in the yard. Tossed in a little fresh cilantro and feta cheese with a very light coating of zesty italian dressing. That was a pretty good salad. I have some hot peppers growing on my patio–not sure what I will use those for. I’m a pansy when it comes to spicy–I’m sure they probably aren’t real hot peppers in Bill’s world, but I haven’t tried any of them yet…
Mikeh–did you ever get served the orange jello salad with the carrots and cabbage mixed in or was that only an Iron Range salad? Hated it as a child and probably would still as a grown up! I think it was topped with a layer of plain mayo for ‘frosting’. Yuck!
August 14th, 2012 at 4:48 pm
Ugh….my mom did shredded carrots and canned pineapple in orange jello. She thought it was so very elegant………
August 14th, 2012 at 5:34 pm
Patti O n Sandy…. that orange jello with carrots etc in it, and the green one with marshmallows and celery?? were staples in the U.P. of Michigan… Horrible stuff.
August 14th, 2012 at 5:41 pm
That just sounds horrendous. Yuck!
August 14th, 2012 at 8:00 pm
Carrot cake is a personal favorite. Thanks for sharing the recipe, the cake looks great.
August 14th, 2012 at 10:29 pm
Cake looks tasty. I just made zucchini bread Sunday. One of my favorites is zucchini jelly. My great grandpa used to make it and it is delicious.
August 14th, 2012 at 11:45 pm
Ohhh, this is being made this weekend. Thanks for the recipe, Bill!
August 15th, 2012 at 9:01 am
Bill, I dont eat any jello to this day, I am even suspect of most “hot dishes” as my mom was a casserole queen. many cans of Campbells cream of mushroom and cream of chicken soup were consumed. Between that torture and Catholic school and attending mass 6 to 7 days a week, I have stored up many credits in Heaven I figure.