Food & Fun Recipes

Zucchini Boats

Ingredients

• 5 medium zucchini
• 1 large tomato, chopped fine
• 2 green onions, chopped fine
• 1 T chopped parsley
• 2 slices salami, finely chopped
• ½ cup shredded cheese

Instruction

1. Cut each zucchini lengthwise, then crosswise, into three equal pieces.
2. Using a small teaspoon, scooop a small hollow from each of the slices.
3. Cook the zucchini in simmering water for about three minutes. Drain.
4. Run under cold water, and pat them dry with paper towels.
5. Combine remaining ingredients in a small bowl.
6. Spoon the filling evenly into the zucchini boats.
7. Broil the boats 3-4 inches from the heat until the cheese melts.

About Zucchini

• Zucchini squash is so prolific in home gardens that there is an official night designated for getting rid of it: National Sneak Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbor's Porch Night (August 8).
• Archaeologists have traced squash origins to Mexico, dating back from 7,000 to 5,500 BC, when they were an integral part of the ancient diet of maize, beans, and squashes. A variety of squash native to the Ozark region of Arkansas and Missouri may be the living ancestor of today's many varieties of summer squash and related gourds. Research indicates it was cultivated in this area by natives more than 3,000 years ago.
• The colonists of New England adopted the name squash, a word derived from several Native American words for the vegetable which meant "green thing eaten green."
• Eventually summer squash made its way to the warm Mediterranean regions of Europe where it thrived and was renamed zucchini by the Italians and courgette by the French. Both names mean "small squash," which implies that they were eaten at their small, young stage.
• Summer squash is very low in calories and high in fiber. It is rich in beta-carotene, vitamin C, folic acid and calcium. One cup of summer squash has nearly as much potassium as a banana. It also contains the valuable mineral nutrient phosphorus.