Super-Sized Zucchini

Next to tomatoes, zucchini must be the garden staple most-often shared with friends and neighbors by zealous gardeners who are over-whelmed by the bounty of zucchini.  Resourceful cooks and bakers have developed recipes such as zucchini bread and zucchini cake so as not to let this precious vegetable go to waste.  Zucchini is loaded with minerals, vitamins, antioxidants, and fiber.
 
Growing up, the only zucchini with which I was acquainted was more than a foot long, very dark green, and weighing several pounds.  It arrived in my parents’ Chicago grocery store late in summer, always early on Friday mornings delivered in a red truck with gold lettering that proudly read Panzarella & Son, our produce vendors.  While his son Tony carried in the many boxes, baskets, and hampers of vegetables and fruit, Senor Panzarella, whom my Father always greeted in Italian, would make himself comfortable on a chair in our store’s back room and patiently trim away excess greenery from heads of lettuce and such, and he made sure that only the freshest, unblemished produce would be left with us.  One customer always came just as soon as she saw the red truck arrive from Chicago’s Randolph Street Market, founded in 1850.  Edna Ferber wrote about this famous market in So Big.
 
As each fruit and vegetable was unpacked and inspected, my Father would display it artistically on oak shelving in front of the store—veggies by the long window and fruits on a perpendicular wall.  Our early Friday customer would pluck each produce item she wanted and set it on the counter with her other groceries.  I don’t know how she cooked super-sized zucchini, but my Mother made it per this recipe.  If zucchini is bolting in your garden or you find a super-sized one in a farmers market, try this recipe.
 
EnJOY​

​The roux-and-sour cream sauce for this version of zucchini also works very well for green beans, wax beans, and white turnips.  These vegetables, however, require blanching before being added to the sauce.  Can be made ahead.  Freezes well.  Simply thaw and reheat slowly.

​1 supersized zucchini,
   peeled, cut into wedges,
   with seeds/pith removed
salt

​Shred zucchini into a bowl, salt shredded zucchini lightly, cover bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate it for 1 hour so that the zucchini shreds become crisp.
 
A handful at a time, squeeze liquid from chilled zucchini.  Spread zucchini all around the inside of a large colander, pressing shreds with a wooden spoon to extract excess moisture.  Set aside. 

​3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup onion, diced
salt

​Heat oil in a 2-quart-or-larger saucepan set on medium heat.  Sweat onion in heated oil until transparent.  Salt onion lightly.

3 tablespoons flour
1 cup water or
   chicken broth
​

​When onion is transparent, add flour and stir constantly until a light brown roux is achieved.  Add water or broth and stir until roux is smooth

​2 ounces sour cream
1/2 cup water

​Make a slurry of sour cream and water.
Add slurry to roux, resulting in a sauce.
Stir constantly while increasing heat to bring sauce to a near boil.

​4 ounces sour cream
1 tablespoon white vinegar

​Reduce heat.
Add additional sour cream along with vinegar.
Stir sauce until smooth.
Add drained zucchini to sauce, stirring to incorporate.  Heat mixture gently.

sweet paprika
black pepper 

Season zucchini to taste with sweet paprika and pepper.  Taste and add more salt if necessary. 

EnJOY
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