Z is for zucchini (or C is for courgette)

Whether you call them zucchini or courgettes these lovely vegetables are incredibly versatile. This morning I was reading a recipe which included grated zucchini in scrambled eggs. I haven't tried it yet. What I did prepare for lunch today was a lovely fresh zucchini recipe which just gets better with time.

I sliced about 4 small zucchini in 1/2 cm slices, then let them sit on kitchen paper overnight. Then today I sliced a clove of garlic and slowly cooked it in olive oil until it was golden. I removed the garlic from the oil and fried the zucchini in batches. Don't crowd the pan - you need to be able to cook each side until they're a lovely golden brown.

Next up I drained the zucchini on kitchen paper. While that was happening, I finely chopped a clove of garlic and sliced a handful of fresh mint.

To pull the dish together, I put the zucchini in a dish, tossed in the garlic and mint and about a teaspoon of dried red chili (adjust this one to your taste - I enjoy a hit of spice). I then added about 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar and tossed it all together.

This is lovely warm, it's lovely when it's cooled. It's even better the next day - but leave it out of the fridge. If you do refrigerate it, bring it back to room temperature before you eat it.

Quinoa

Last night I was wondering what I could do with some quinoa I had in the cupboard that needed using up. One of the things I love about quinoa is that it’s a complete protein – brilliant for vegetarians. Anyway, I found inspiration in the June 2012 issue of Australian Good Taste magazine. Of course, being me, I had to mess around with the original recipe. So Melissa’s Quinoa Cakes have metamorphosed into a quinoa frittata. Hope you enjoy it. 

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked quinoa (about 3/4 cup raw)

100 g feta, crumbled

4 eggs, lightly whisked

1 carrot, peeled, coarsely grated

55 g (1/3 cup) toasted pine nuts

20 g baby spinach, chopped

2 Tbs fresh mint, chopped

2 Tbs sultanas

1 tsp finely grated lemon rind

1 tsp each of ground cumin, coriander, turmeric and paprika

Combine quinoa, feta, egg, carrot, pine nuts, spinach, mint, sultanas, spices, and lemon rind (everything really) in a bowl and mix it all up. Season with salt and pepper.

Heat a small amount of oil in a frypan over a low-medium heat. Pour quinoa mixture into pan and cook until base is cooked – probably about 5 minutes. Place under a hot grill to finish cooking.

This is a great way to use up any quinoa leftovers lurking in your fridge, but seriously, don’t wait until you have left-over quinoa. 

Do what I did and use the recipe for inspiration. Vary the spices, maybe add some chilli. Some fried onion and garlic would be great in it. Or ramp up the fresh flavours with loads of fresh herbs. 

(If you’ve never cooked quinoa before, just put 1 part quinoa in with 3 parts of water and simmer it for about 15 minutes. You can also add flavour by using stock, or some wine.)