Vegetable of the Month

I know, the suspense has been building for almost three weeks now!  What will it be???

Ta daaaaa....

Zucchini!

Since I'm growing it on my balcony, I might as well post about the amazingness of this tasty veggie.  Check out this photo of my very first harvest!

So what's so special about zucchini?  Get this -- according to the Canadian Nutrient File, one medium zucchini (about 196g) will give you...

• only 33 calories!!!
• 2 grams of fibre!
• 2 grams of protein
• not even one gram of fat!
• 11% of your daily folate needs
• 11% of your daily potassium needs
• 47% of your Vitamin C needs
• also contains high levels of lutein and other phytochemicals

What a little powerhouse!!!

Tell me more!

Zucchini and their other squash cousins (like yellow summer squash, pattypan squash, spaghetti squash, acorn squash, etc) are available year round, but are in peak season in the spring and summer.  When choosing zucchini, remember that the small-to-medium sized ones will contain more flavour than the larger varieties, which will hold more water.  Avoid the ones with squishy or wrinkly spots, but superficial scratches or little bruises are ok and perfectly edible.

How do I prepare it?

Cool!!!

You can eat zucchini raw or cooked.  I like my raw zucchini dipped in something, like hummus or bean dips to add a protein punch.  This veggie can be cooked in many different ways, like grilling and roasting (yummmmm!), sauteeing or including in stir fries, boiled (such as in soups or sauces).  A relatively novel way of preparing zucchini is making zucchini pasta, using a Spiralizer (or even just using a vegetable peeler if you're cheap like me!).  It basically makes a pasta that doesn't require cooking, you just blanch it to heat it through (place in boiling water for about 30 seconds).

Enough already, give me a recipe!

Another fun way to cook zucchini - baking.  As in, making a zucchini loaf!  There are many variations on zucchini loaf, including chocolate zucchini loafs, but this is one that I've made before and had it turn out really really tasty.  The website also happens to show a number of other tasty zucchini-containing recipes on the sidebar, such as vegetarian lasagna, pasta with grilled veggies, and grilled zucchini ribbons.

Click here! http://www.canadianliving.com/food/zucchini_loaf.php

Best advice - experiment with your zucchini!  It's  a very versatile ingredient that can be added to just about anything that you would normally put other veggies in (spaghetti sauce, stir fry, roasted veggie sandwich?).  And hey, for only 33 calories for a WHOLE ZUCCHINI, you can't lose :)