Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Italian Zucchini Saute


Every season I have my favorite foods to make and look forward to when the ingredients are in season. So I was thinking.....the foods that are my signature, every season favorites, may be totally new and exciting to you.


The zucchini's will be ready to be picked around my area soon and so the race to find different recipes to use them up begins.

There is one recipe that is a standard in my house for zucchini and it may be new to you! It really has no name! I first tasted it at an Italian restaurant I used to work at. They still serve a small plate of it before every meal with the Italian bread.


I will call it Italian Zucchini Saute because that is basically what you do. Saute it. Simple, quick and versatile. Oh, and it tastes really, really good.

Some Italian recipes just don't have any measurements to go with it. Italians just cook that way. You can make as much or as little of it as you like according to the amount of zucchini you have.


Be creative, be brave and just throw the seasonings in with a little Italian flair! 

Olive oil
A good sized zucchini, with skin on, cut into slices or chunks
1 large vidalia onion, sliced
minced garlic
1 - 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
fresh basil
Italian seasonings
Romano or Parmesan grated cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a saute pan and add zucchini, onion and garlic. Saute till soft and lightly browned. Add the tomatoes, seasonings and cheese. Simmer for about an hour to marry all the flavors. Sometimes I leave it on the stove on very low for a couple hours. Serve it hot or cold.


It is great sprinkled with grated cheese served over pasta, on it's own as a side dish, or serve it over rice. It is great leftover the next day and it is very good eaten cold out of the fridge.


And don't forget to add a finishing touch!

16 comments:

  1. Dear AnnMarie, This is a perfect use for zucchini. It makes a great sandwich with melted mozzarella too. Blessings dear. Catherine

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  2. Sounds good - thanks for sharing.
    Enjoy your evening.

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  3. Ann Marie, This looks yummy! I used to make it all summer for dinner. I'd take a platter of hot pasta, cover it with the zucchini mixture, a nice heavy sprinkle of mozzarella cheese, put the whole platter in the oven just to melt the cheese. My kids would fight over it! Hope you're enjoying your summer. Sad to say, I don't eat pasta any more :(

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  4. This looks delicious, Ann Marie! I love anything with fresh basil in it. I keep trying to grow it, but I'm not gifted in that area- at all. Zucchini is one of the few vegetables my husband will eat. I need to try this!

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  5. This looks delicious, Ann Marie! I love anything with fresh basil in it. I keep trying to grow it, but I'm not gifted in that area- at all. Zucchini is one of the few vegetables my husband will eat. I need to try this!

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  6. What a great way to use zucchini! It looks so good, my friend! I think this would be perfect for my lunch one day - thanks for sharing.

    Hugs to you!

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  7. Oh, I love zucchini! great recipe, looks so yummy!

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  8. This is one great summery recipe!

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  9. So yummy Ann Marie :) My grandmother introduced me to zucchini and I fell in love with it; her dish was very similar to yours and it's one of my favorite. You've inspired me to get the ingredients (my zucchini-in-a-tub are still at the flowering stage :( ).

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  10. This recipe has been featured at Tasty Tue a sday this week! Feel free to stop by and grab featured button, as well as link up some new recipes here!

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  11. Hi AnnMarie, Thank you so much for stopping by. Your zucchini saute looks absolutely marvelous! This is my kind of dish..with a little pasta- perfection!

    In regards to shopping for peaches, I’m not certain of the type of peach I used for my galette, I just grabbed what my local market had on sale that week. However, when shopping for peaches, make sure they are not too hard. Not that they should be overripe. Here’s a great quick article on shopping for peaches – http://localfoods.about.com/od/peaches/a/How-To-Buy-Peaches.htm.

    Take care and be well!

    xo,
    Tammy<3

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  12. Hi AnnMarie!
    There are 72 Vendors today! Yeah!!!
    I think 1 a day'd be polite....but you can put a link to your selling website so all your items would be seen at once.

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  13. Dear AnnMarie, I wanted to stop by and say,"hello". I hope you are enjoying the rest of the summer and that all is well. Thank you for visiting and your kindness.

    Blessings dear. Catherine

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  14. sometimes a simple dish is just delicious! sautéed onions add a wonderful flavor to all vegetables.

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  15. I love zucchini and I make something similar from a home Bulgarian recipe. Thank you for sharing!

    Maria

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  16. Okay, we have exactly the same herbs here in Greece, but the Italians beat us to it, being the savvy businesspeople that they are, and the world calls these aromatic goodies, Italian seasoning! Your Italian zucchini saute sounds and looks scrumptious, my friend, and I shall give it a try as I need to use up many of our tomatoes!

    Poppy

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