Courgette three ways

From the end of June Courgettes are available in abundance and here are a few tried and trusted recipes to deal with the glut.

1. Raw Courgette Pasta with pesto

For a main course, use one medium courgette per person. 

If you  have one use a spiralizer that will turn courgettes into past. If you aren’t blessed with one just use a vegetable peeler on the courgette the long way, making long strands. It will work. Only peel the green outside off the courgette when they are very mature and the skin is very hard. Young medium sized courgettes are best.

Use any Pesto you like and mix well with the courgette pasta. You can warm up your courgetti in a pan or cook them for a minute or two in hot water.

Note: How to make pesto see dip section and choose one of the pesto recipes.

2. Courgette Chutney

• 1.3 kg/3 lbs courgettes

• 2 tomatoes

• 3 onions

• 150 gr/5 oz sultanas

• 250 gr/9 oz brown sugar

• 500 ml vinegar (I used 250 ml cider vinegar, 100 ml red wine vinegar, 150 ml white wine vinegar)

• 1.5 tbsp salt

• 2 tsp mixed pepper corns

• 1 tsp coriander,

• 1 heaped tsp chili powder or finely chopped fresh chilies

• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1.      Grate or slice the courgettes, put in a colander, sprinkle with the salt and mix well. If the courgettes have a tough skin, you can peel them and compost the skins.

2.      Leave for 2 hours, then rinse and press out excessive liquid.

3.      Chop the tomatoes and onions.

4.      Add all ingredients in a big pot, stirring over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Simmer until thickened and syrupy with no runny liquid (it took me approximately 1.5 hours)

5.      Poor into sterilized, heated jars and seal.

6.      Store in a cool dark place for at least a month to allow the flavours to develop. Keeps for up to two months in the fridge once opened.

7.      It is delicious with omelettes or any vegetarian meal, but also with meat or on a cheese sandwich.

3. Courgette Hummus 

• 1 courgette, peeled and chopped about 1 1.2 cups)

• 2 tbsp tahini

• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

• ½ tsp crushed garlic (1 clove)

• ¼ tsp ground cumin

• ¼ tsp paprika

• ¼ tsp salt

1. Place all the ingredients in a food processor fitted with the S blade and process until smooth.

2. Stop occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

3. Stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator. courgette hummus will keep for five days.

Variation: For chickpea hummus: Replace the courgettes with cooked or sprouted chickpeas and add 2 tbsp olive oil and 3 tbsp water or as needed.