Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Christmas Come Early (and more tales of zucchini)

I have a zucchini update for you, but I am so SICK of talking about, thinking about, dreaming about and eating the darned stuff that it will have to wait...

I would much rather fill you in on the events (or rather THE event) of the past weekend.  We are fortunate in the community that I live in to have something called a 'Little Monsters Swap Meet', which is basically a huge garage sale that focuses mainly on all things babies and kids.  Moms from the community (and a few businesses) can rent tables and sell or swap their kids hand-me-downs with other moms, dads and kids in the community.  This is a HUGE event in our community, and each time people line up from a ridiculously early hour in order to get in first and get the best deals.  This time around, my friend Carla had rented a table and as such, I went to help her out.  The best part?  As a seller you get first dibs on all of the good stuff!  Before the doors had even opened, I had stocked up for all of my son's birthday and Christmas gifts!  I bought him a bouncy house, a huge stack of books, a chalkboard easel, a ride-em motorbike, a shake 'em race car set, some puzzles and a tool bench with a ton of tools... all for about $200!!!!  (The bouncy house alone is worth that purchased new).  I know, I know, I probably went a little bit crazy, but I sure don't get opportunities like this very often.  Most of the toys are now hidden away in my house for birthdays, Christmas, and rainy days to come.  Given my disdain for all things packaged and expensive, it really was like Christmas for ME!  Thanks to Amanda and Amanda for putting on such a wonderful event!

And now, (sigh), back to the zucchini...

The good news is that after literally putting zucchini in our meals 2-3 times per day, we have finally started to make progress on 'the pile'...


The bad news is that I can hardly stand the thought of putting another bite of it in my mouth... in any form! 
On the other hand, there have been some real winners, so to speak, throughout this contest. 
First there was the zucchini balls...

Those were delicious, especially served with tzatziki on the side...
Then there was the crab stuffed zucchini...

It was also delicious...

I have one more recipe to make for the official contest (Moussaka - don't worry Linds, I will get there!) and then I am freezing whatever is left! 

I have just one more thing to share... last night I invented a perfect way to use up veggies in your fridge... carrots, onions, potatoes and you guessed it... zucchini!  I called it 'Hidden Zucchini Curry' and I just have to share: (there are no amounts b/c I just don't cook that way!)

-Ground Chicken
-Garlic Salt
-Garlic
-Pepper

Saute the above until chicken cooked through

-Carrots and Zucchini: about 4 cups after they've been through the food processor
-1/2 cup onion
-Olive Oil
-Salt
-Potatoes, diced, about 3
-Potato flour
-Chicken broth - 2 cups
-Curry paste
-1 can coconut milk

-Saute carrots, zucchini and onions in olive oil and salt. Add potatoes. Add flour until thickened. Add broth steadily to make a roux. Add curry paste and then coconut milk. Simmer until the potatoes are cooked through. Add chicken and serve topped with raisins and plain yogurt over rice.

Your husband and kids will never guess just how many veggies you managed to sneak in there!  That is a Marebare guarantee!

Whew!  That is enough outta this girl.  Happy cooking!

Marebare

3 comments:

  1. OOOooooh, I want the recipe for the zucchini balls!

    It reminds me of these wonderful zucchini burgers that I used to make. I've stopped making them because the recipe calls for TVP, and after reading Michael Pollan I've removed processed soy from my diet. But now I'm thinking maybe I could revive it and substitute smooshed garbanzos or maybe even crumbled tofu... I'll let you know how it works out!

    My allergic brain is pining for curry. It sounds delicious... sigh...

    The swap meet sounds great BTW.... Congratulations on your scores!

    ReplyDelete
  2. OK... stop the presses. Here is the most creative use yet for surplus zucchini: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/23/montana-woman-fends-off-b_n_736504.html

    ReplyDelete
  3. HA! That is awesome! And I will e-mail you the zucchini ball recipe RIGHT NOW!

    ReplyDelete