The zucchini glut is so dire at the moment that I couldn't even GIVE them away at the market!
I'm not bothered though. I am happy to store up my zucchini for the winter too.
We talk about zucchinis a lot here on SJ but for a recap, my soup recipe is here and the minted roasted zucchini here or refer to my cook book on pages 20 &21 which also includes the zucchini slice recipe.
So besides sticking them into every unsuspecting chocolate cake and freezing huge batches of soup, dehydration is another sterling idea.
Wash and cut into uniform-ish sized pieces and place in the dehydrator for about 7 hours depending on the size. The resulting "chips" can be used as lunch box snacks for the vegetably-inclined but they are a great addition to the slow cooks and casseroles of winter.
Store them away in an air tight jar in the cupboard.
Both our freezers are chock-o-block. Just look how much space you save. A large coffee jar would easily be equivalent to 10kg of fresh zucchini.
At this moment communities here are still struggling with the effects of the latest bushfires and Qld is in the midst of another terrible flood. Even if your house is not burnt out or flooded, you can still be affected by power outages for extended periods. It's a good idea to store your food in a number of ways. If you preserve and bottle and dehydrate, you will still have food sources if your electricity should fail and spoil your freezer load.
*****************************************
Reminder that the Living Better group meets this Thursday 31 st Jan.
details in the side bar or email me.
I will be doing some talks and demos at the Kiliecrankie Nursery open day on the 3rd Feb from 10.30-2.30
*****************************************
Hello Tanya,
ReplyDeleteGood old zucchini, I love having it in Chocolate cake. Our vegie garden is a bit sad this year, far too hot. Sounds like yours is blooming nicely.
Dehydrating is a great idea.
Happy days.
Bev.xoxo
Oh love zucchini slice and zucchini soup and another favourite is sliced zucchini on the BBQ or in a grill pan and then place a slice of parmesan cheese on the top and let it melt.......so yummy....
ReplyDeleteI would've taken the zucchinis off your hands at the market Tanya, we don't have a plant in this season but am going to remedy that today. May be a little late but will do it anyway and when they turn into marrows the chooks absolutely love them.....
Claire :}
I made zucchini pickle yesterday.......our glut is coming albeit a little late. Drying sounds like a good idea - I think I'll give it a try!
ReplyDeleteI hadn't thought about storing dried food and using it in stews etc. How silly of me - thanks :)
ReplyDeleteps. Mine wont grow, I'm devastated! They keep pollinating, and starting but not getting past 10-12cm. yummy but I really want the big whopppers that you can't give away!
ReplyDeleteI found a great recipe for using up larger (Marrowish) zucchini that have gone a bit far. Its something similar to lemon curd using zucchini as the bulk of the product. If you would like to have a look at the recipe it's here...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.food.com/recipe/zucchini-cream-130433
I have been giving my daughters all of my excess, they love it :)