As Promised…. The Zucchini Blog
 |
| The Zucchini Crop =) |
As you have seen in previous pictures Will’s garden produced
a zucchini bush of Amazon jungle proportion this year. So large that if it hadn’t been for
the insane heat this summer I think it would have over run the garden, the
farm, KY, and eventually the world. But
thanks to the 100+ temperatures we just had a jungle-sized bush that produced zucchinis
bigger than my soccer player calves.
This thing was the zucchini plant that could. We picked around 10 LARGE zucchinis every
week. Total yield of that plant is 50
zucchinis (give or take). All of those
were at least twice as big as the zucchini in the grocery store.
…It’s really crazy to think that we started it
from a little tiny seed back in March over spring break.
If it were a cucumber plant we would have been in a pickle,
but this predicament was different. What
were we to do with so many zucchini?!
They were taking over like alien invaders!
Well, Will went to work on Google (one of his many talents) and
dredged up some delicious recipes, and I got creative in the kitchen. Throw in some handy tips from friends on Facebook
and we began to fight back!
 |
| The Zucchini Brownies |
Here is everything that we have done with the zucchini so
far (there are still more zucchini coming.
The plant has ‘roid rage, and doesn’t want to die, but the yield is
nothing like it was, thankfully)
- Zucchini and Corn Stir Fry
- Grilled Zucchini Spears
- Zucchini Bread
- Zucchini Hash Browns…. That didn't work.
- Zucchini Fritters
- More Zucchini Bread
- More grilled Zucchini Spears
- Several Zucchini Boats (more the size of cruise ships)
- Gluten Free Zucchini Brownies
- And we shredded up and froze quite a bit of it to make more things with later.
The Zucchini Invasion of 2012 has been an interesting
one. It has taken ingenuity, hard work,
and a hearty appetite, but I think that we just about have it conquered.
The other best part of the fight has been sharing and giving
away the crop. That is probably Will’s
favorite part. Last week I said that the
first thing he does is check the garden when he gets home; he also gets equally
excited to give it all away. So besides
adding some spice and color to this summer’s cooking the amazon zucchini plant
has been a way to experience the joy of giving.
The Great Zucchini Invasion of 2012 has been a way to practically experience a part
of God’s character in our everyday life.
In other news, THE WEDDING IS SO SOON!!!!
I go back to Kansas in a week to tie up loose
ends, and in less than two weeks we are going to be married! In case you can’t
tell I am a little excited. I twirl,
bounce, giggle, smile, and then just sit there super content when I think about
it!
My mom has put a lot of work into, and I think
that the wedding is going to be amazing.
Hopefully only a glimpse of how great our future life together will be-
an appropriate kick off to all the places we will go.
Speaking of going places: tip to honeymooners everywhere:
if you are going on a cruise talk to people and find out the good excursions,
and then search on line for promo codes.
Props to Will and “Papa” Tackett for getting our honeymoon all set up!
Lot’s of stuff happened last week. We had dinner with my Aunt and Uncle who were
en route from DC to Texas. I got an infection in my foot and had to go to the
doctor, and you know because my mom works for a doctor’s office I have never
had to find a doctor and go through the normal check-in procedures… another
quintessential life experience, like the first bee sting I got that caused the
infection.
 |
| The Couch Celebration! |
Last update- WE BOUGHT OUR FIRST PIECE OF
FURNITURE! A couch =). Furniture shopping is exhausting, but we got
a good deal and a couch we really like.
AND there were free kool-aid’s involved! We are moving a lot of stuff
into our soon to be home on Sunday, so I am sure I will have pictures and
excitement galore to share next week.
If you are interested in how to make all the
delicious food that we made,
RECIPES:
Zucchini and Corn Stir Fry
Grilled Zucchini Spears
Zucchini Bread
o
There are a lot of recipes for this online. I used my grandma’s =) and added extra
cinnamon. I was holding my breath when Will
tried the first bite and let out a sigh of relief when he said “This is just
like banana bread! I didn’t know
vegetables could taste like this?!” Consequently
it was his breakfast for the next two weeks.
Zucchini Fritters
o
I did a lot of recipe perusing and then kind of
made my own. It ended up being something like this:
 |
| Zucchini Fritters |
2 cups of shredded zucchini (let it sit in a little salt for about 5-10
minutes and then strain out the excess liquid)
1/3 c flour
1 egg
¼ c corn starch
Salt
Pepper
Basil or Italian seasoning
1/3 c parmesan cheese
Directions:
Mix it all together, spoon it onto a greased cookie sheet and press it
down into patties, bake for 15 minutes at 400 and then flip them and broil them
for a few more minutes. You want them to
be golden on both sides.
Several Zucchini Boats
o
Will’s mom made these. There is a collage of them. They had brown rice, Italian stewed tomatoes,
onions, mushrooms, garlic, and feta cheese in them I know.
 |
| Zucchini "Cruise Ships" |
Gluten Free Zucchini Brownies
1 cup of almond butter
1 1/2 cup of grated zucchini
1/3 cup of raw honey
1 egg
1 tsp of vanilla
1 tsp of baking soda
1 tsp of cinnamon
1/2 tsp of nutmeg
1 cup of dark chocolate chips
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all the ingredients into a large bowl and mix everything together.
Pour into a greased 9x9 baking pan.
Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
