Photo: supplied
Blessed with more courgettes than you know what to do with? You're not alone. Gardens all over Aotearoa are groaning under the weight of roroa iti growing out of control.
If you're not cursed with a sprawling, prickly-stemmed courgette plant (or worse, two of them) taking over your backyard, shops are just about giving them away.
A kilo of courgettes - which equates to six to eight of them, depending on size - will set you back about $4. Whether you're picking them from the garden or buying them, bigger is not better. A sleek, slender baby courgette is much more appealing than a 'mature' one (otherwise known as a marrow).
As well as being cheap and plentiful, courgettes are good for you. They're a decent source of vitamin C and contain folate, niacin, vitamin E, riboflavin and potassium.
Unfortunately, this doesn't tend to make them easier to give away. If you've distributed courgettes around your neighbourhood and still have some to get through, RNZ is here to help.
Here are 10 recipes to make the most of the harvest.
Courgette and feta fritters Photo: Supplied
Lauraine Jacobs' Courgette and Feta Fritters couldn't be easier, with a basic ratio of one grated courgette to one egg, and a generous scattering of feta and dill in the mix. Lauraine makes them small and serves them with drinks, noting that they're a great match for pinot gris.
Niki Bezzant's Smoked Fish Pilaf uses just one courgette to serve two people, but you could always add more in place of the suggested broccoli and beans (it would seem a shame not to, unless you have a glut of them too).
If it's too hot to cook, Jess Daniell's Asian Slaw uses up several courgettes with minimal effort.
Meanwhile, there's just over 10 minutes' worth of standing at the stove required to make the Two Raw Sisters' Garlic Zucchini And Mint Pine Nut Salsa.
If you're the recipient of other people's courgette generosity, be advised that Ray McVinnie's recipe for Penne With Zucchini uses up six of them, plus some stale bread and a few tomatoes.
Julie Biuso's Smoky Zucchini With Fresh Yoghurt Curd (basically zucchini chips with a delectably creamy dip) will help eight of them disappear.
The top prize though has to go to Fiona Smith, a true courgette aficionado whose Double Courgette, Parmesan And Walnut Salad uses 12 small courgettes and six medium-sized ones. Drop that recipe into your neighbours' WhatsApp group after you've helpfully shared your bounty.
Photo: Two Raw Sisters
Need a heartier option for an intemperate summer evening? Simon Gault's Italian Barbecue Chicken With Courgettes And Cheesy Polenta should do the trick. The clue is in the name: the chook is lovingly rubbed with olive oil, lemon juice and Italian seasoning pre-barbie, while the courgettes are sliced into ribbons and bathed in olive oil before a quick flash on the grill. Cheesy polenta - Italian for delicious carbs - completes the picture.
Friends who baulk when you offer them courgettes might be more receptive to a jar or two of Patricia Soper's Sweet Vegetable Pickle - a tangy way to use up four courgettes and a cauliflower as well as jazz up future snacks and school lunches.
If your whanau has already reached their courgette limit, there's one last resort: they'll never suspect that you've hidden them in this Great Zucchini Chocolate Cake unless you tell them what it's called.
Simon Gault's BBQ half chicken Photo: Supplied
Drown the cake in chocolate water ganache (stir together 150g finely chopped dark chocolate and 150ml boiling water until smooth, then set aside until thickened) and they'll never suspect a thing.
