In small towns where everyone knows each other, people don’t lock their doors – except at zucchini harvest time! If you don’t lock your doors people will leave tons of zucchini there.
Until about forty years ago, zucchini was almost unknown in
North America, except in Italian-American neighbourhoods, where it was called Italian squash. Zucchini dates back 7000 years to , where it was one of the “three sisters”, along with maize (corn), and beans. That pre-Columbian trio (some would say “Trinity”) is today still the core of the Mexican diet. Mexico
When European explorers arrived in the
, they carried these unknown foods back home with them. The new -world squash eventually reached Americas where it was dubbed Zucchini, from Zucca, denoting small squash. The Italians are acknowledged with propagating our modern zucchini from the indigenous American squash. Both the French and the English call this fruit Courgette, which is the tenth most favorite culinary vegetable in the Italy . UK
Mild- flavoured, ranging from savory to sweet and with more potassium than a banana, zucchini is a very versatile foodstuff, serving as a vegetable, as well as in breads and desserts. You can even bake a chocolate zucchini fudge cake!
In zucchini’s birthplace, the flower is often employed in the soup, sopa de flor de calabaza and is very popular in a quesadilla variation.
Zucchini’s versatility extends to salads and a popular one is topped with a bacon dressing over shredded zucchini. Bacon makes nice vinaigrette but I want to tell you about a zucchini salad that is, in a word: simply superb. Let me show you a zucchini salad that doesn’t require any cooking.
Zucchini with Lime and Coriander
- 2 cups (1 pint, 450ml) of shredded zucchini
- ¼ cup (60ml) of chopped coriander (aka Chinese parsley and Cilantro)
- The juice of ½ lime ( 2 tablespoons, 30ml)
- 3 tablespoons (45ml) olive oil
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) salt
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) of honey or sugar (some people like a little more)
- ¼ teaspoon (1ml) black pepper (could substitute half a jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced)
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) fresh gingerroot, minced
- ¼ teaspoon (1ml) powdered cumin
- 1 teaspoon 5ml) ranch dressing (optional)
- Combine everything except the shredded zucchini.
- Now mix into the zucchini in a glass or ceramic bowl.
- When mixed, cover and refrigerate for at least two hours.
Try this invigorating salad, goes great with outdoor bbq.