On a hot summer day long ago, my dad warned me not to leave my car’s windows open when I parked in front of the house.
“Why not? No one’s going to steal this piece of junk.”
“Yes, but the people around here with gardens will leave zucchini in your back seat.”
Prolific stuff, zucchini. See the giant plants in the picture below, over there to the right? That’s our zucchini. Since we’re only sitting on five acres here in the middle of Tennessee, Chareva decided to try a technique called “square-foot gardening” … you know, the kind of garden people grow in little back yards or on rooftops in urban areas. I understand the rationale, but the zucchini has apparently responded to the tight quarters by launching a hostile takeover of the garden.
I wouldn’t mind seeing so many zucchini exploding from the garden if half of them weren’t as big as my leg. Chareva’s determined to make use of them and is already sounding a bit like Bubba talking about shrimp in Forrest Gump: “Zucchini salad, zucchini stew, boiled zucchini, fried zucchini, zucchini noodles, zucchini pancakes …”
For lunch today, I had zucchini stuffed with sausage and cheese. For dinner, I had zucchini stuffed with sausage and cheese. I’m probably going to find zucchini stuffed with something in my lunch-bag at work tomorrow. Fortunately, zucchini stuffed with sausage and cheese is delicious. Someone asked for the recipe last week in comments, so I’ll include it at the end of this post. Not much to it, really.
The other foods we’ve started harvesting from the garden so far are green beans, sugar-snap peas, parsley and basil – all of which are (for now) a safe distance from the zucchini. Later in the year, we hope to be harvesting butternut squash, pumpkins, sweet potatoes, carrots, sweet corn, cantaloupe and tomatoes. (No, I didn’t ask for the sweet corn. It was the Chief Gardener’s idea.)
Maybe it’s just the satisfaction of knowing that we grew them ourselves (and by “we” of I course mean “Chareva”), but the sugar-snap peas and green beans taste crisper and juicier to me than their store-bought cousins. The zucchini is good too, even though I’m afraid we’ll soon be looking for open car windows to offload some of our supply.
The chickens are getting bigger by the day, and at least one of them started laying little mini-eggs. Nothing inside yet, so I guess chickens get the hang of making the shells first then learn to fill them later. They’re supposed to be laying full-sized eggs in early autumn. If we end up overloaded with eggs, I doubt we’ll have to sneak them into unlocked cars. We have neighbors who would no doubt volunteer to take those off our hands.
The ferocious guard dogs are getting bigger by the day as well. It’s gotten to the point that when they charge into the kitchen to maul me with affection, they can almost knock me over.
The only downside of living on a mini-farm during the summer growing season is the ticks. I don’t know how many live on our land, but at least one manages to attach itself to me pretty much every time I go out and spend an hour or so playing frisbee golf. I used to make the mistake of coming inside, tossing my clothes on the bed, then taking a shower. I learned my lesson after going to bed tick-free and waking up with one of the little @#$%ers digging into the side of my knee.
Now whenever I come back in after spending time outside, I go straight to the laundry room in the basement and remove every stitch of clothing before walking upstairs. Last week, Chareva was tossing some of my clothes into the washer and tick jumped from the clothes onto her arm.
Our original flock of guinea fowl – the designated hit men for the ticks – ran off, so we’ve got another on the way. This time we’ll make sure they’re raised in a pen outside and get used to the place before they can get loose and wander around. I want the tick-eaters to consider this their home. I’d happily put Guinness in their water dispenser on Saturday nights if they’d promise not to leave.
Now about that recipe …
Chareva’s Kitchen: Stuffed Zucchini
Cut zucchini in half and scoop out the insides. Salt and pepper the zucchini boat.
Cook up some sausage.
Spoon in salsa, fresh chopped basil, chopped mushrooms, then add the browned crumbled sausage.
Top with mozzarella or cheese of your choice.
Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and starting to brown.
I know what you’re thinking: but what the heck do I do with the zucchini I scooped out? Well, don’t let it go to waste. Chareva fried some zucchini slices in the sausage grease today then sprinkled on some Parmesan and sea salt. It was delicious. Great little zucchini side dish to go with the zucchini main course.
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Hey Tom,
Perhaps a breakfast of Zucchini, eggs, sausage, and zucchini like us vikings eat would be a good idea! Stay away from the rat tart though.
What, no spam with eggs and sausage and spam?
“Makes me wonder what he was eating beforehand. I don’t know if McNuggets were fried in trans fats in the ’90s — probably.”
Well he talks a lot about Cocoa Puffs and Mountain Dew, typical nerd culture food, so yeah, I imagine McNuggets were a step up. But he was skeptical that a McDonald’s diet could have such profound consequences so fast, a la Spurlock, given his rather benign experience.
Thanks for sharing the recipe. I hope someone will share some zucchini with me. I guess there’s always the Farmers’ Market. Would you consider posting pictures of your chicken coop? I’m planning to start an egg-raising flock next spring and am looking for ideas for coops.
Our chicken coop is just a small barn that was already on the land when we bought it. There’s a big barn in another pasture which may house sheep someday.
hmmm, I’m always looking for something to replace hamburger buns, so maybe… zucchini sliders! with a side of zucchini fries! Or maybe even zucchini chips (we have a dehydrator too!). I’m off to the grocery store….
If you swing by here, I’ll give you several pounds for free.
Even if your pants are treated you have to watch out for the ticks that drop down on you from the trees.
We used to dust our yard with 5% Sevin to get rid of the ticks but the store where we got it isn’t here anymore.
I’ve become very conscientious about checking for ticks after being outside. I’ve found a couple halfway down my back, which means they dropped onto me and crawled down there.
I LOVE your garden/farm updates! The guard dogs are getting so big! We haven’t gotten to the garden planting here yet (Ohio), but need to get it going here soon. Oh, and can’t wait to try the zucchini recipe – thanks for posting the pix also. 🙂
I didn’t know you could plant this late in the year. Some farmer I am.
Love to read the farm reports! I grate zucchini into spaghetti sauce and even chili, since each of those dishes improve with slow and lengthy cooking, the zucchini melts and you don’t even know its there. A couple of things I learned from experience growing zucchini, is that if you happen to leave them too long on the plant, they will stop producing new fruits. After the first burst of many fruits that you get in the beginning, my plants slowed way, way down and I couldn’t figure out why (because of their reputation of being so prolific). I came across the info by accident online that if there was a monster zucchini hiding on the plant, it wouldn’t produce anymore. Sure enough, I checked and found it, removed it and got more fruits after it was removed.
The other thing I learned was that if you are growing another type of squash in the same (small-ish) garden, they will cross and if you use any of the seed next year from one of the plants, you will get a hybrid. This happened to us with spaghetti squash and zucchini. The second year fruits were the colour of zucchini but the shape of spaghetti squash. Inside they were more solid like a zucchini while young, but when allowed to grow larger, had the spaghetti strands.
I believe Chareva was warned about the hybrid possibility. If not, we’ll get some interesting results.
Wow, awesome garden!! I am sooo jealous of your 5 acres. It’s exactly what I want to have someday!
Coconut-flour zucchini muffins are a wonderful way to use some more up without adding a lot of sugar/starch to your diet. We make them all the time (and the same recipe works well with grated carrots, although I add some cinnamon & nutmeg to those). It makes 6-8 muffins:
1.5-2 cups grated zucchini
1/4 cup coconut flour
3 eggs
1/4 cup coconut oil or butter, melted
1/4 tsp salt (or 1/2 tsp if you used coconut oil, since it doesn’t have salt like butter)
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp vanilla
2 tbsp honey (original recipe said 4 tbsp and 2 still seemed sweet … I might try 1 next time!)
Sounds excellent. I’ll pass it on to the cook.
Hey Tom,
Perhaps a breakfast of Zucchini, eggs, sausage, and zucchini like us vikings eat would be a good idea! Stay away from the rat tart though.
What, no spam with eggs and sausage and spam?
“Makes me wonder what he was eating beforehand. I don’t know if McNuggets were fried in trans fats in the ’90s — probably.”
Well he talks a lot about Cocoa Puffs and Mountain Dew, typical nerd culture food, so yeah, I imagine McNuggets were a step up. But he was skeptical that a McDonald’s diet could have such profound consequences so fast, a la Spurlock, given his rather benign experience.
Just leave out the pasta and this makes good use of zucchini and squash
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pasta-recipes/beautiful-courgette-carbonara
I found (for my family anyway) it’s more of a side dish than main course when it’s made without the pasta.
Thanks for sharing the recipe. I hope someone will share some zucchini with me. I guess there’s always the Farmers’ Market. Would you consider posting pictures of your chicken coop? I’m planning to start an egg-raising flock next spring and am looking for ideas for coops.
Our chicken coop is just a small barn that was already on the land when we bought it. There’s a big barn in another pasture which may house sheep someday.
I LOVE your garden/farm updates! The guard dogs are getting so big! We haven’t gotten to the garden planting here yet (Ohio), but need to get it going here soon. Oh, and can’t wait to try the zucchini recipe – thanks for posting the pix also. 🙂
I didn’t know you could plant this late in the year. Some farmer I am.
“In that case, I’m wondering what critter laid eggs in the henhouse.”
I’m guessing it was a bird. 🙂 Probably a wren. An image google shows a resemblance, and I’ve had wrens nesting in my coop.
Another problem with the chicken theory is that birds can’t lay hollow or empty eggs. The shell forms around the egg. See http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/birds/info/chicken/egg.shtml
As long as it isn’t a snake egg.
Just leave out the pasta and this makes good use of zucchini and squash
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pasta-recipes/beautiful-courgette-carbonara
I found (for my family anyway) it’s more of a side dish than main course when it’s made without the pasta.
Thanks so much for posting this recipe, Tom. I had two teeth extracted yesterday and have been seeking some soft low carb meals (been living on eggs and Atkins shakes since the surgery). These look very tasty. Chareva must be a great chef. I’d like to see more of her recipes in the future. I even love her name. It’s really beautiful! Take care.
I hope you can eat it without any pain.
“In that case, I’m wondering what critter laid eggs in the henhouse.”
I’m guessing it was a bird. 🙂 Probably a wren. An image google shows a resemblance, and I’ve had wrens nesting in my coop.
Another problem with the chicken theory is that birds can’t lay hollow or empty eggs. The shell forms around the egg. See http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/birds/info/chicken/egg.shtml
As long as it isn’t a snake egg.
Thanks so much for posting this recipe, Tom. I had two teeth extracted yesterday and have been seeking some soft low carb meals (been living on eggs and Atkins shakes since the surgery). These look very tasty. Chareva must be a great chef. I’d like to see more of her recipes in the future. I even love her name. It’s really beautiful! Take care.
I hope you can eat it without any pain.
“We used to dust our yard with 5% Sevin to get rid of the ticks but the store where we got it isn’t here anymore.”
Sevin kills bees. The fear of ticks is irrational. It’s really very easy to do regular tick checks, and I think it’s better than poisoning your environment and yourself with nasty, carcinogenic chemicals.
“I’ve become very conscientious about checking for ticks after being outside. I’ve found a couple halfway down my back, which means they dropped onto me and crawled down there.”
Ticks don’t drop from trees and they don’t–can’t–jump. They climb up on plant stalks and wait for a host to brush by. Once they’ve hitched a ride, they climb, looking for a good place to bite. They prefer the cover of clothes or hair.
Oooohhh, you are so fortunate to live in a place where you have not only planted your garden but are harvesting! Here in NW Montana it’s still snowing and yesterday’s high was only 48 degrees. I eagerly check the forecast every day for a sign that summer is actually coming, but it’s just not anywhere on the horizon. Also I wanted to share a link with you from my friend Amy’s blog. How they set up their chicken feeder and water was pretty clever to keep the chickens from wasting so much feed and pooping in their water. It also keeps other birds from pilfering their feed. http://www.thebackyardbounty.com/2011/04/14/growing-chicks/
Good idea on the chicken feeder.
Sounds like you need some global warming up there.
Now that you mention it Dave and Sheri, I did find a small dead bird in the chicken yard a few weeks ago – trapped by the netting. It must have laid the eggs. JoeH, thanks for the suggestion. I did feed a huge zucchini to the chickens and they ate it right up – should help cut down on chick feed 🙂
“We used to dust our yard with 5% Sevin to get rid of the ticks but the store where we got it isn’t here anymore.”
Sevin kills bees. The fear of ticks is irrational. It’s really very easy to do regular tick checks, and I think it’s better than poisoning your environment and yourself with nasty, carcinogenic chemicals.
“I’ve become very conscientious about checking for ticks after being outside. I’ve found a couple halfway down my back, which means they dropped onto me and crawled down there.”
Ticks don’t drop from trees and they don’t–can’t–jump. They climb up on plant stalks and wait for a host to brush by. Once they’ve hitched a ride, they climb, looking for a good place to bite. They prefer the cover of clothes or hair.
Oooohhh, you are so fortunate to live in a place where you have not only planted your garden but are harvesting! Here in NW Montana it’s still snowing and yesterday’s high was only 48 degrees. I eagerly check the forecast every day for a sign that summer is actually coming, but it’s just not anywhere on the horizon. Also I wanted to share a link with you from my friend Amy’s blog. How they set up their chicken feeder and water was pretty clever to keep the chickens from wasting so much feed and pooping in their water. It also keeps other birds from pilfering their feed. http://www.thebackyardbounty.com/2011/04/14/growing-chicks/
Good idea on the chicken feeder.
Sounds like you need some global warming up there.
That’s some fantastic gardening going on there! I have never been able to get zucchini to do that. Not once in about 8 years of trying. It’s always a flop.
Maybe you’ve got bad soil?
Now that you mention it Dave and Sheri, I did find a small dead bird in the chicken yard a few weeks ago – trapped by the netting. It must have laid the eggs. JoeH, thanks for the suggestion. I did feed a huge zucchini to the chickens and they ate it right up – should help cut down on chick feed 🙂
I have recently started gardening as well. My zucchini is not nearly as large as your bush but I’m already kind of getting tired of zucchini! So thanks for the new recipe! That sounds great!
And I agree, home grown peas are fantastic!
Do you neighbors keep their cars locked?
That’s some fantastic gardening going on there! I have never been able to get zucchini to do that. Not once in about 8 years of trying. It’s always a flop.
Maybe you’ve got bad soil?
I have recently started gardening as well. My zucchini is not nearly as large as your bush but I’m already kind of getting tired of zucchini! So thanks for the new recipe! That sounds great!
And I agree, home grown peas are fantastic!
Do you neighbors keep their cars locked?
That was one rather tasty looking zucchini dish. Absolute low carb heaven right there. Definitely worthy of opening up a low-carb diner if only you were still in LA. With all these chickens you have, you will never have to buy eggs. 🙂 I’m glad for your progress on the farm.
If were in L.A., I wouldn’t have the chickens.
That was one rather tasty looking zucchini dish. Absolute low carb heaven right there. Definitely worthy of opening up a low-carb diner if only you were still in LA. With all these chickens you have, you will never have to buy eggs. 🙂 I’m glad for your progress on the farm.
If were in L.A., I wouldn’t have the chickens.
Hi – your up the road neighbor here –
I’ve taken the UT extension canning class and done 20+ years of canning, mostly tomato and some preserves. Anyway, I would be happy to teach or help a beginner. It is really do-able, but having someone around for the first session of a food can be less nerve wracking. I think it is a lot of fun; good thing too because I have some relatives that only want canned tomatoes for gifts.
Another option – I think these folks had a class last year – http://www.stoneycreekfarm.webeasysite.us
I appreciate that. I’ll let the budding canner know.
Hi – your up the road neighbor here –
I’ve taken the UT extension canning class and done 20+ years of canning, mostly tomato and some preserves. Anyway, I would be happy to teach or help a beginner. It is really do-able, but having someone around for the first session of a food can be less nerve wracking. I think it is a lot of fun; good thing too because I have some relatives that only want canned tomatoes for gifts.
Another option – I think these folks had a class last year – http://www.stoneycreekfarm.webeasysite.us
I appreciate that. I’ll let the budding canner know.
Hi Tom,
Zucchini are known as “courgettes” in the UK. They are the baby form of a vegetable known over there as a “marrow”. Nothing to do with bone marrow, just the same name.
How big can they get? People grow them very large for contests. Do a Google image search for “giant marrow” and tremble.
I’m afraid we’ll grow the Zucchini That Ate Tennessee.
Hi Tom,
Zucchini are known as “courgettes” in the UK. They are the baby form of a vegetable known over there as a “marrow”. Nothing to do with bone marrow, just the same name.
How big can they get? People grow them very large for contests. Do a Google image search for “giant marrow” and tremble.
I’m afraid we’ll grow the Zucchini That Ate Tennessee.