Recipes by Zola - Zucchini Torta (and Zola variations)

ArcaMax Publishing > Home & Garden > Recipes > Recipes by Zola

Your email address is safe with us. View our Privacy policy.

Food and Wine Pairing Guide:

Match the perfect wine with your recipes using our Wine Pairing guide

The Funnies:

Get free jokes, comics, and more! See them all on
our funnies page

Weather:

Accurate national, regional, and local forecasts on the weather page

Zucchini Torta (and Zola variations)

Zola Gorgon

My First Garden...

I was 19 years old when I planted my first garden. I was living in a teeny house. And I mean teeny. The house measured 20' X 20' plus a 6' X 8' sunroom. It didn't take me long to decorate something that small; (one bedroom, a living room/kitchen and a small bath. One closet). I had plenty of time on my hands that summer and decided to garden. The garden I planted covered as much of the lot as the house did. This was my first garden. I was a true novice gardener.

My boyfriend dug up a section of the yard that measured about 20' X 20'. I set about buying seeds and got to planting. I remember planting several things in long rows. I planted corn, pumpkins, zucchini, beans, lettuce and tomatoes. I also planted marigolds around the perimeter. I had read somewhere that marigolds keep the bunnies out of your garden. Bunnies hate the smell of marigolds.

Here are some other things I learned from my first garden.

Marigolds don't keep bunnies out of the garden as long as the bunnies are big enough to jump over the marigolds. I used to drive into my driveway at night and when the headlights shone on the garden it would startle the bunnies and they'd leap out of the garden only to return when I went in the house. I didn't mind sharing my garden with the bunnies. There was plenty for all of us. And I didn't have money for a fence.

Bunnies are not afraid of water either. I "got smart" and decided that if I watered the garden with my big swaying sprinkler in the evening the bunnies wouldn't go munching. Instead I found out that bunnies love to "take showers" and they are not adverse to eating while they do! Picture a very wet bunny munching on small wet tomatoes.

I learned the zucchini plants "run" across the yard. I didn't know I could pick up the vines and sort of wind them back into the garden. When we mowed the lawn we used to pick up each vine and mow under it. The garden was in the middle of the yard so there was grass all around. It looked pretty, but that sure adds mowing time.

I learned I needed to plant more corn. I was raised in Wisconsin. Some call it The Land of Cows and Corn. You'd think I'd know more about planting corn just from osmosis. I planted two rows. I found out months into my project that in order for the corn to pollinate you need at least three rows. I ended up with skyscraper-tall corn plants and not one ear of corn.

I learned zucchini will grow and grow and grow until they grow longer and fatter than footballs! They ended up looking more like torpedoes! At the end of August I went off to college. We had eaten a few of the small zucchinis and I left the rest in the garden for my return on weekends. While I was gone, the zucchinis went from a reasonable size to something that looked alien! There were torpedoes in my garden! I could not give away zucchini fast enough. I could not eat enough of it. I could not think of enough ways to cook it, bake it, or decorate with it.

This experience came before the internet. I didn't have a lot of cookbooks, so I started making one of my first original recipes. I decided that zucchini would make good noodles in a lasagna. I could make slices that were as long as regular lasagna noodles and I set about making zucchini lasagna every weekend for about 2 months. Definitely got sick of it.

But that brings me to today's recipe. Oddly enough, when the end of August rolls around I now get a hankering for zucchini. I love zucchini all year round, but that garden experience kicks back in and I start to think of new ways I can use up zucchini. This is my latest adaptation. I can't really say this is a Zola original. I read a recipe by a woman named Kim Graber. She had submitted her idea to a website. Reading her zucchini pie recipe got me thinking. I decided that instead of a pie, mine would be baked in a square pan so you could serve it as a side dish with a grilled piece of meat. In this case, I grilled bratwurst (or "brats" as we say in Wisconsin). I changed a couple of ingredients but it's pretty close to what Kim had in mind. I also decided there could be variations on a theme, so watch for my suggestions at the end of the recipe. These are the Zola originals. This could be your new, favorite way to "use up" your zucchini crop, or round out a great meal when you get a hankering like mine.

Zucchini Torta (and Zola variations)
Serves 6 as a side dish

1-1/2 cups of grated zucchini (I use my mandolin on the shred setting. I get 2" long, very thin slivers this way). Don't peel the zucchini. Leave in the vitamins!
3/4 cup of buttermilk baking mix. I used Aunt Jemima Buttermilk Complete pancake mix. Worked great)
2 small chopped tomatoes (another garden staple)
1 cup of corn kernels. (Fresh, frozen or drained canned will work)
1/2 cup of diced onion
3/4 cup of shredded Cheddar cheese
2 eggs beaten
1/8 tsp of cayenne (optional) or salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a 9" square baking pan.

In a medium bowl mix zucchini, baking mix, tomato, onion, cheese and eggs together. Break up the egg yolks as you begin to mix and just keep stirring until it's all juicy and stirred. At first you'll wonder what I forgot to add. You'll think it needs water or milk or something. It doesn't. Sprinkle the cayenne on top for a little zip or add salt and pepper and mix a bit more.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until it's lightly tanned on the top and doesn't jiggle around. Cut into rectangle-shaped pieces. Serve warm.

Variations:

Add chopped red pepper bits or roasted red peppers instead of tomato. Add 1/2 tsp of Italian herb blend and change the cheese to mozzarella and you'll have an Italian version.

To the main recipe add 2 Tbl. of drained, chopped green chilies from a can and you now have a Mexican version.

Change the cheese to Swiss and add a tsp of curry powder and you now have an Indian version. Cut into large segments to serve 4 with a salad and you have a vegetarian dinner.

Add 1/4 cup of green pepper bits and 1/2 cup of peas to the main recipe and you have a "garden version".

Change the cheese to Gruyere, take out the corn, add a 1/2 cup of green onion instead of regular onion, a cup of diced asparagus and a 1/2 tsp of tarragon and you have a French version.

Enjoy!
Cheers,
Zola

Send email to Zola at zolacooks@gmail.com.

This news arrived on: 09/08/2008

Share this Story