Stuffed Zucchini

Ingredients

2 Round zucchinis

8 Large white button mushrooms

1 Small onion

1 Clove garlic

1 Cup tomato sauce

4 Slices mozzarella cheese

Olive oil

Method

Wash the zucchinis and place them in a large sauce pan with enough water to ensure that they float.  Bring the water to a boil and let them boil gently for about 10 minutes, until the zucchinis just start to get soft.  Don’t overdo it or the zucchinis will turn to mush when you cut into them.  Take the zucchinis out of the water and put them in a bowl of cold water until they are cool enough to handle.  Cut them in half and scoop out the seeds with a spoon, making a cavity that you can fill.

Dice the mushrooms, onion and garlic into small cubes.  Saute in olive oil for about 5 minutes, then add a few spoonfuls of tomato sauce, stir it in and turn off the heat.  Fill the zucchinis and bake at 350 F for about 15 minutes.  Place a slice of cheese over each stuffed zucchini and put them under the broiler for a minute to melt the cheese and brown it slightly.  Serve hot on a bed of tomato sauce.

* (Okay, technically they’re spherical but most people just call ‘em round)

Photo courtesy of Mari & Nacho

Now is the time of year when we start to see fresh broad beans in the garden and in the markets.  Also known as fava beans, they are popular in Spain and Portugal, among other places.  This is a simple dish that you’ll find in a lot of restaurants in Spain, and housholds as well.  Spanish cured ham is hard to find in the United States, but  its italian cousin, prosciutto, is much easier to obtain, and makes a fair substitute.

Broad Beans with Ham

Ingredients

2 cups fresh broad beans

1/3 cup diced cured ham

1 large clove of garlic, chopped or crushed

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 onion, sliced (optional)

salt

Method

Heat the olive oil over medium heat and saute the onion, garlic and ham for a few minutes.  Add the broad beans, turn down the heat and cover, simmering the beans for about 10-15 minutes until they’re soft.  Serve hot.

photo courtesy of eflon

This is a great recipe to keep on hand when you start to harvest chard from the garden or when it arrives in the weekly produce delivery.  I also make this with spinach when I don’t have Swiss chard on hand.

Ingredients

1 large bunch of Swiss Chard

1 1/2 – 2 cups cooked chick peas (Garbanzo beans)  Canned is ok too

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 small onion, sliced

olive oil

salt

Method:

Wash the Swiss chard leaves well to remove dirt and sand.  Cut off the stems and save them for another recipe (coming soon!). Coarsely chop the leaves and place them with 1/4 inch of water in a pot or large sauce pan.  Heat to water to boiling and steam the leaves for 5-8 minutes. Drain well.  In a saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onions and garlic.  Saute for a minute and then add the chard and chick peas.  Reduce the heat and cover, stirring occasionally until it heated through.  Serve hot.

Learn more about:

Swiss Chard

http://www.flickr.com/photos/zordor/ / CC BY 2.0

This is a traditional dish from central Spain that makes a great side dish.  I have also seen it served as a tapa in bars.

Pisto Manchego

3-4 tablespoons olive oil

1 green pepper

1 red pepper

1 medium onion

2 small zucchini

2 cloves of garlic

4 cups of peeled and chopped tomatoes

1 small bunch of chopped parsley (about 2 tablespoons)

Chop the onion, peppers, zucchini into 1/2 inch pieces and mince the garlic.  Heat the oil over medium heat in a saute pan or an earthenware cazuela.  Saute the vegetables for a few minutes, and then add the tomatoes.  Cook over medium heat for about 30 minutes, until the stew has a very thick consistency.  It is often served with a fried or hard boiled egg on top, as shown in the photo.

Stuffed Zucchini (serves 2 as a side dish)

1 or 2 medium zucchini

1 small eggplant or 1/2 large eggplant

3 large mushrooms

1 clove garlic, crushed

olive oil

salt

Pimentón (Spanish Paprika)

Cut the zucchini in half lengthwise and bake in the oven for about 45 minutes.  Then remove the seedy, fibrous center to make room for the filling.  Chop the eggplant and mushrooms into a small (1/2 cm or 1/4 inch) dice.  In a saute pan over medium heat, add a drizzle of olive oil and the garlic.  Saute the garlic for a few seconds to let it impart its flavor into the oil, and then add the eggplant and mushrooms.  Saute for a few minutes and then flavor with salt and a pinch of pimentón.  I like to use a about a 1/2 tsp. of  pimentón, which is a lot for this small dish.  I mix spicy and sweet varieties.  Fill the zucchinis with the eggplant and mushrooms and serve immediately, or prepare the zucchinis and filling before hand and keep in the refrigerator.  You can fill them and then heat them in a hot oven or microwave just before serving.

photo courtesy of tomcensani

Here in Salamanca, Spain the weather is starting to get hot, so its time to make gazpacho. It’s basically an uncooked vegetable soup that is usually served chilled, making it a great summertime dish.   There are a lot of variations on the basic recipe.  Mine is very easy to make so we have gazpacho several times a week when we can find good tomatoes.  I use the tomatoes with their skins and seeds and just put them in the blender with the other ingredients, so this recipe only takes a few minutes to prepare.

Gazpacho

2 large tomatoes – I like beefsteak varieties for this dish

1 cucumber, peeled

1/4 yellow onion

1 clove garlic

1 stalk celery

1/2 red bell pepper

1/2 green bell pepper

3 Tablespoons olive oil

Dash of wine vinegar – more or less to taste

Salt

Adjust the amounts of the ingredients to fit your kitchen blender.  Coarsely chop the tomatoes and add them to the blender, along with the olive oil.  Blend them for a few seconds.  Depending on how pulpy the tomatoes are, you may need to add a little water to get them to blend.  Coarsely chop the other vegetables and add them to the blender.  Blend them for a minute until the consistency is smooth and add salt and vinegar to taste.

My wife and I developed this recipe based on a salad served at Neomonde Mediterranean Deli in Raleigh, North Carolina. It will keep in the fridge for a few days so it makes a great side dish to prepare on the weekend and serve during the week, when you don’t have time to cook.

Chick Pea Salad

3 Cups cooked chick peas

3/4 Cup chopped parsley

1 Cup chopped green olives

1/4 Cup chopped chives

Lemon juice from 1/2 lemon

3-4 Tablespoons olive oil

1 clove garlic, crushed to a paste

Salt

Cumin

You can use canned chick peas or cook your own and store in the fridge before you’re ready to prepare the salad.  The directions are simple, just combine all the ingredients and add salt and cumin to taste.  Its better to leave it in the refrigerator for a few hours so all the flavors can get happy before serving.