A few weeks ago, my co-workers and I were working at Dogwood Farms in New Jersey and we came across an entire box of zucchini. The farmers we were helping gave us the entire box for free because it wasn’t “sell-able”, which I always knew was a problem in the food industry, but I had never wanted to come to come face to face with this overwhelming issue. Seeing the waste in real life was a whole different story. The other interns and I took the zucchini back to our cottages and split it up. Now, some of us like veggies more than others, so I ended up with a much larger share than I originally anticipated.
The amount of this squash that we had was overwhelming at first, but then some of us got creative-like me! I used this zucchini to my advantage; I barely make $15 a day and groceries can be quite a financial burden (especially with a brand new Prius to finish paying off), so I started incorporating zucchini into every meal. So, I thought that I would share some of my favorite zucchini recipes that I tried out on here in case anyone else LOVES zucchini or happens to be stuck with an entire box-full of zucchini in the near future.
Crustless Zucchini Quiche
http://atreatsaffair.com/crustless-zucchini-quiche-recipe/
What is great about this recipe is that it only needs 4 ingredients! I also was able to substitute the ingredients with lactose for lactose-free substitutes. I used lactose-free milk and daiya cheese and it turned out just fine 🙂
No-noodle Zucchini Lasagna
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/172958/no-noodle-zucchini-lasagna/
I was able to make this successfully without a mandolin, but I also had gigantic (I kid you not) zucchini squashes. In addition, I substituted the beef for Italian chicken sausage and it was still tasty. Still sticking to being flexitarian, not pescatarian or vegetarian.
Zucchini Bread
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/6698/moms-zucchini-bread/
I would have used my grandmother’s recipe instead, but I am a fool and did not bring it. Still, this recipe that I found on the internet worked really well. I still have a loaf in my freezer and shredded up the leftover zucchini and froze it so that I can make several more loaves in the future.
So, overall I made 1 large lasagna, 3 quiches, 2 loaves of banana bread, and some of the zucchini I simply sauteed and paired with salmon. All of this and I STILL have shredded, leftover zucchini in the freezer to make more bread in the future. Being resourceful pays off. I already had most of the ingredients in the pantry or fridge, which was very convenient. I say, go befriend a farmer and take their “ugly” fruits and vegetables off of their hands.
A day in the life 