Zucchini Parmesan
Simple ingredients
This is one of my long time favorite dishes that I make when you have a surplus of large zucchini squash. Either ones you find in the garden hidden amongst the leaves or from a friendly neighbor who doesn't know what to do with these bigger zukes! When you are fed up with making more breads or had enough with stuffing them... then give this recipe a try as I know you will love it as much as we do. Yes it is exactly like eggplant (aubergine) Parmesan except of course you use the zucchini instead. Bigger the better but try not to use the humungous ones that have hard seeds in them - they do not cook up as nice. I use a 13x9 inch casserole dish but you can use what ever you want.
Ingredients:
2-3 Large Zucchini squash - I look for ones 12 inches or so long and 3 to 4 inches in diameter in the middle
Olive Oil - for frying
Bread Crumbs - homemade, store bought, plain or seasoned totally up to you
Crushed Tomatoes - your own or even store bought sauce is ok - Again your preference I know some people who use Prego or Newman's Own Marinara for their recipe - we like the crushed toms with basil
Mozzarella Cheese shredded
Parmesan Cheese
Eggs (2-3) for egg dip
Ingredients:
2-3 Large Zucchini squash - I look for ones 12 inches or so long and 3 to 4 inches in diameter in the middle
Olive Oil - for frying
Bread Crumbs - homemade, store bought, plain or seasoned totally up to you
Crushed Tomatoes - your own or even store bought sauce is ok - Again your preference I know some people who use Prego or Newman's Own Marinara for their recipe - we like the crushed toms with basil
Mozzarella Cheese shredded
Parmesan Cheese
Eggs (2-3) for egg dip
Step 1 - cutting up the squash
Make 1/4-1/2 inch slices
Very simple to prep for this recipe. Wash the squash, trim the ends and then begin to cut slices about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Not rocket science - some of mine are thinner than others but I do try to keep them the same if I can for uniform cooking.
Step 2 - Dip and fry
Bigger bowls mean less mess :)
In a bowl beat eggs until blended and add a bit of water to make a runnier wash. In another bowl pour some of the bread crumbs into it. At this time you will want to put your fry pans on the burner with olive oil in them to heat. I usually have my gas flame at 4 or so. I end up turning it down after 15 minutes or so if the oil starts to smoke. Now just take your slices of zucchini dip them in the egg wash then place them into the bread crumbs coating both sides of the pieces. Once your oil is up to temp place the coated slices into the pans and cook on both sides until the edges of the squash become fork tender and the bread crumbs are golden brown.
Step 3 - Fry and begin to layer in Dish
Layer similar to lasagna
Now you simply cook the slices and when done begin to layer them in the 13x9 inch bakeware or whatever you are using as a dish. Once you have a complete layer, spoon on sauce then cover with a sprinkling of shredded mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Keep adding more layers - I usually get 3 layers in my 13x9.
Step 4 - Finish up and bake
3 layers of zucchini
Once you have all the layers cooked and covered with a final sprinkling of cheeses - it should look like the picture to the left. Now it is time to cook it in the oven at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until sauce is bubbly all over and cheese is melted and also bubbly. If you decide you want to freeze it for a mid winter feast with a mid summer taste.. this is one of those dishes that you can wrap in saran wrap and then foil, place it in the freezer and pull out for a quick easy meal. I even cook mine frozen at 350 degrees but let it go for about 1 - 1 1/2 hours depending on size of dish. Just keep an eye on it you can tell when it is done.
Here is my yield from 4 large zucchinis. I had to use 2 cans of sauce and a large bag of mozzarella cheese. These are now both in the freezer wrapped up and waiting to be eaten at a later date. This can be a messy recipe but once you take a bite of the blend of flavors the mess is worth every minute of clean up! Hope you enjoy as much as we do!