Even though I have bemoaned the rain, and not-so-silently wished it would go away, my garden loved all the wet weather we had. My gazillion tomatoes are just now ripening and my zucchini has been giving me giants for a week or two. I planted twice as many basil plants this year than last because I kept running out last year. This year I have WAY too much to use. My in-laws have also been giving me some produce from their garden, so today I whipped up a yummy lunch using tomatoes, zucchini and basil from the garden.
Usually I have all kinds of cooked meats because I tend to cook 10 pounds at a time and put the extra in the freezer in 1 or 2 pound bags. [It is my best attempt at OAM cooking.] But all I had in the freezer was chicken, so I had to actually cook meat. I wanted a pizza feel for this dish to appeal to my younger kids, so I went with Italian sausage. [I'm sure chicken would have been great, but to be honest, I really wanted the sausage, and it was thawed, so it had to be cooked.]
While the Italian sausage browned, I sliced the zucchini and tomatoes. I was going for half-inch thick slices, but the tomatoes were a little thicker. While the sausage finished browning, Little Bits and I went out and picked some fresh basil from the garden.
I threw a little oil in our large skillet and started the zucchini which I sprinkled with Italian seasoning, garlic, salt and pepper to taste. It sizzled away on medium high heat, making the kitchen smell delicious.
Meanwhile, I cleaned and chopped the basil. After a few minutes, when the bottom side was starting to brown, I flipped them over.
Can you tell I forgot to time this recipe? At this point, I had just enough time to clear the spices and knife and cutting board off the counter and get out the cheese and plates before the next step.
Does anyone else tell time by how much they can get done? Like, pancakes cook faster than I can change out the laundry, but I can change it out and fold a whole load while waiting on eggs to boil. I can unload the cups from the dishwasher while waiting on over hard eggs to cook. With my kids I tell time by shows on netflix. "Lunch will be ready in 20 minutes." I say. "How long is that?" Little bits will ask. So I'll say, it is like one episode of Sophia. of course, she usually takes that as an invitation to actually WATCH an episode!
Anyway, cook the zucchini a few minutes on each side, until they are golden brown.Scoot them to the side of the pan and add your tomatoes.
Sprinkle the basil over the tomatoes.
There is no quantitative measurement of basil or any spices for this recipe. it is "to taste" but I used about 1/8 cup of chopped basil. (Then I sprinkled more on my personal plate when I ate. I love basil!)
Watch the tomatoes. They don't take nearly as long to cook as the zucchini. You are not trying to make them mush, just get them hot. Depending on the thickness of your slices this will only take a minute or two on each side.
Basically, you are done. Easy!
Now, the fun part! Stack a tomato slice, a zucchini slice or two and a scoop of sausage onto your plate and top with mozzarella cheese.
You can throw the whole thing in the microwave for 20 -30 seconds to melt the cheese if you want.
If you don't have a picky eater who hates cheese (how did I get a child who hates cheese???), you could combine it all in one pan and melt the cheese on top -- like a skillet casserole.
OR, bake this in the oven. This is what I am planning to try next time. I will bake the veggies, then stack them and put them under the broiler to melt the cheese. I think they will be a little crispier that way. But still, this was SO yummy! I just had to share. Enjoy!
How are you using your garden produce this summer?
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