Market Report: Zucchini’s sweet side

Technically a fruit, zucchini is treated almost exclusively as a vegetable in recipes, but hold on. A zuke pie you should try.

Your weekly look at what’s playing at our local farmers markets and how to put those finds to work in your kitchen starts here …

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Zucchini’s sweet side

By Carol Bangert/For Based in Lafayette

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I mentioned in a Market Report last summer that I’ve had a soft spot for zucchini and other squashes dating back to my grad school days when I studied archeology in Arizona. In a cultural anthropology class I learned about the beautiful relationship between corn, beans and squash – The Three Sisters. Indigenous peoples use this companion planting method because the three plants are mutually beneficial and provide a complete protein when eaten together. Pretty cool. It works something like this:

(Photo: Carol Bangert)

The corn serves as the support structure for the beans as they grow and wind around the stalk. The beans provide nitrogen to the soil, which fortifies the corn and squash; and the squash spreads over the ground, covering the soil to retain moisture and stop weed growth around all three plants. I find this botanical teamwork astonishing.

The zucchini invasion is here again, and farmers markets and farm stands are overflowing with squashes of all shapes, sizes and colors. We all have recipes and strategies to deal with the glut, and there’s no point in rehashing the recipes we fall back on every time zucchini lands on our kitchen counters.

But take heart! I took a few laps around the farmers market last week and overheard – OK, eavesdropped on – some surprising conversations about using zucchini in dessert recipes. Sure, we’ve all tried zucchini muffins and bread, and I have a great zucchini chocolate chip cookie recipe that I use when the squash is in season.

But how about zucchini cream pie? Hello!

(Photo: Carol Bangert)

A woman at the market described a pie her grandmother made, so I tracked down a recipe for an old-fashioned zucchini pie and, rising above all the objections at my house, I made one. OMG. I’ve mentioned before that I will inflict bodily harm to get the last slice of sugar cream pie. Well, this recipe would elicit the same response. Creamy and sweet and comforting. No one would ever know this pie was chockful of squash, and, honestly, I think I could serve this at Thanksgiving, and no one would know. (When I mentioned this to our daughter, she announced that she was swearing off pie this holiday season. Go figure.) If you like cream pies, I highly recommend tracking down a recipe and giving this a try. Here’s the one I used.

Next, I’ve got my eye on zucchini brownies.

However, I never will forsake my favorite savory zuke recipes. All squashes are great on the grill with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper; diced, roasted and added to a pasta salad; sautéed with onions. I like zucchini sliced lengthwise and stuffed with diced tomatoes, onions, garlic and cheese and baked until golden. That’s a meal, folks. I even cut up a golden zucchini and made some great oven fries. Husband-approved. Well, he ate them.

(Photo: Carol Bangert)

If “friends” or neighbors do a drive-by, sneaking zucchini on your front porch, welcome the possibilities. Now is not the time to turn your back on this in-season workhorse. Take time this summer to get to know this lovely, adaptable sister.

Store your market haul on the counter if you’re eating it the same day. Otherwise, store zucchini unwashed in the fridge in a ventilated bag for one to two weeks. If you see the skin starting to wrinkle, it’s time to get cooking!

Next week: Sweet and hot peppers

Other late-July fruits and vegetables at the market include:

• Cabbage

• Bok choy

• Broccoli

• Baby carrots

• Cucamelons and other cucumbers

• Beets

• Red, white and green onions

• Bell peppers

• Chile peppers

• Garlic and a few garlic scapes

• Radishes

• Turnips and salad turnips

• Greens (kale, mustard, arugula, lettuce varieties, microgreens, Swiss chard)

• Herbs: Mint, oregano, basil, cilantro, sage, lavender, thyme, chives, parsley and more

• Mushrooms

• Potatoes

• Green beans

• Eggplant

• Tomatoes

• Zucchini, yellow and pattypan squash, squash blossoms

• Blueberries, cherries and peaches

DAYS/HOURS FOR THE MARKETS

West Lafayette Farmers Market: 3:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays, through October. The market is held at Cumberland Park in West Lafayette with more than 50 vendors.

Lafayette Farmers Market: 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturdays, through October, on Fifth Street between Columbia Street and mid-block to Ferry Street, and Main Street between Fourth and Sixth streets.

Purdue Farmers Market: 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Thursdays, through October. The Purdue Farmers Market is held on the Memorial Mall on Purdue’s campus. This market is a concession-heavy market that allows students, faculty and staff to have lunch options in a unique outdoor setting.

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Carol Bangert, editor of Greater Lafayette Magazine, has been a regular at Greater Lafayette farmers markets for more than 20 years. From May through October, she’ll scout out in-season produce at the markets and report back on fresh finds and how to use them.

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Tips, story ideas? I’m at davebangert1@gmail.com.