Cooking zucchini or squash in interesting and delicious ways can become a challenge when you have a glut of zucchini. How about an easy zucchini recipe collection to give you some new ideas?
EASY RECIPES FOR COOKING ZUCCHINI OR SQUASH
Another summer, another glut of zucchini. I don’t even grow my own vegetables, but still there always seems to be one or two zucchini lying around in my kitchen in August.
Zucchini plants are very generous and there are only so many zucchini you can go through in a regular sized family before somebody starts to complain about it.
So what to do with those zucchini that are growing larger and larger every day? Well, you start making gifts out of them, no matter if your friends or neighbors like zucchini (or cooking generally) a lot, main thing you are rid of at least one of them…
This is how I get to all those zucchini or squash, nice neighbors and friends. But unlike other people, I love zucchini and I can actually cook them well, so I am always happy when I find yet another zucchini on the bench beneath my window.
And I am talking about cooking zucchini well, because I know lots of people who only cook zucchini in two ways: mushy zucchini cooked in water or a creamy soup if they are being really creative.
A zucchini soup is always a wonderful idea, but those mushy cooked zucchini are an absolute no-go. No wonder that so many people cringe their nose when hearing about zucchini.
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WHAT TO DO WITH ZUCCHINI?
There are so many super delicious ways of cooking zucchini. I cook them so often that I actually managed to collect 31 zucchini recipes on my blog. That’s a lot for just one vegetable, I would say. And there are tones of other tasty and easy zucchini recipes that I haven’t managed to blog yet…
To make things easier for you, I thought about making a round-up of various easy zucchini recipes, from healthy sauteed zucchini, to zucchini cakes and zucchini pickles.
Have a look, I am sure you will find at least 1 or 2 easy squash or zucchini recipes you would like to try!
Cooking Zucchini – Over 30 Easy Zucchini Recipes
Are you looking for a delicious zucchini or squash main dish? Something like a warming soup, some zucchini meatballs or a healthy low-carb zucchini lasagna? Or a quick way of cooking zucchini in a skillet? Here are some of my favorite zucchini recipes.
I will start with the most popular zucchini recipe on Where Is My Spoon, the page view winner during the last 2 or 3 weeks. These pan fried zucchini cooked the Romanian style are just amazing: battered, melt-in-your-mouth zucchini slices that you will keep making once you've tried them once. The perfect recipe for getting your kids into liking zucchini, my children love them.
Another one of my favorite squash or zucchini recipes. This easy zucchini pie is something that you will start making on a regular basis.
The best vegetable lasagna I have ever tried (and I have tried so many). The perfect occasion for using any leftover vegetables you have in the fridge, including zucchini.
Another lasagna, but this time the squash or zucchini plays the main role. You will replace the noodles with grilled zucchini slices, layered with ground meat and white sauce. Make sure you try this dish, you will like it more than you probably think right now.
These filling savory zucchini pancakes with feta are amazing! My daughter's favorite zucchini recipe, she asks me to cook them on a regular basis. They are super easy to make and a perfect light meal with a green salad on the side.
This vegetable soup with zucchini and turkey meatballs is one of my favorite soups. You will not need too many zucchini or squash to make it, but if you have a small one or some leftovers in the fridge, don't skip this out, you will love it!
A simple and creamy zucchini soup spiced with fennel seeds, a real delight! You can serve it as it is with just some bread on the side or take a few more minutes to make those amazing zucchini souffles made with the zucchini peel, that step will make this soup a perfect one to serve to guests.
Zucchini boats filled with millet and feta cheese, this might seem unusual (due to the use of millet), but trust me, it is worth buying a pack of millet just to make this zucchini recipe.
These squash or zucchini beef meatballs are probably the juiciest meatballs I've ever made, a definite must-try!
A super elegant pasta dish with zucchini and goat cheese, a recipe I have been cooking regularly for more than 10 years now. Everybody loves it, including people who claim not to like goat cheese.
A very easy pasta dish with vegetables like julienned zucchini and carrots in a creamy sauce, the perfect recipe to get your kids into eating more vegetables without complaining.
Giant couscous with chicken and zucchini, a quick, comforting and delicious meal made in a skillet.
Another quick and easy to make skillet dish that will make your family happy, this time ground beef, zucchini or squash and potatoes. This zucchini main dish can be made with leftover cooked potatoes, if you happen to have them.
An elegant meal you could serve to guests, these turkey rolls stuffed with feta and vegetables in a creamy wine sauce are sure to please.
Delicious chickpea meatballs made with various vegetables including zucchini. Served in a comforting tomato bell pepper sauce or more simply in a wrap or flat bread.
This vegetable strudel made with leftover cooked turkey is the kind of meal you make to impress! It looks and tastes just amazing!
Zucchini Side Dish Recipes
Zucchini are perfect when thinking about side dishes as well.
A simple way of cooking zucchini in a pan. And the rest of the ingredients make this dish a real treat. You can serve the sauteed zucchini with onions as a side dish or as a light main course with bread or rice on the side.
Another delicious and simple way of cooking zucchini, this time with pesto. Again you can serve these zucchini as a side dish for meat, chicken or fish or as a main meal with pasta, for instance. Either way, you will love this zucchini pesto recipe.
The zucchini or squash are only used for the side dish served with these amazing pork chops. A tasty vegetables rice with zucchini, perfectly suitable for other meat, chicken or fish dishes as well.
My favorite squash or zucchini pickles. A sweet sour pickles recipe I make every summer using those giant zucchini I get from time to time. Perfect as a side dish for heartier meals like goulash or stew or served with bread and cheese, for instance.
Vegan Zucchini Recipes
In order to maintain a healthy diet (and to save the planet) you should include vegan meals in your weekly meal plan. Here you will find quite a few vegan recipes including zucchini.
A delicious zucchini curry with chickpeas and coconut milk and flavored with lots of spices. If you like Indian food (and who doesn't), you will love this easy curry.
A simple recipe for vegan rice with tomatoes, zucchini and carrots: healthy, quick, cheap and so delicious!
This recipe for vegetable rice might seem similar to the one mentioned above, but it is a total different way of cooking rice. This is a pilaf or something like a congee, a rice dish which is cooked longer, until really soft and comforting.
A healthy pasta recipe with vegetables and lots of turmeric, another great way of serving something healthy to your children without them even noticing it! 🙂
My second favorite way of stuffing peppers, preceded only by my grandmother's stuffed peppers with mince. These peppers filled with vegetables are more delicious than you can image! Serve them with (vegan) mashed potatoes for a heavenly vegan/vegetarian main meal.
A protein rich, easy to make vegan stir-fry with lots and lots of vegetables, including zucchini.
A delicious and easy to make vegan sauce for pasta.
Zucchini Cake Recipes
Zucchini is one of the few vegetables you can use for making cakes. You will not taste the zucchini in any of these recipes, their main purpose is to make those cakes super moist and maybe just a little bit healthier. 🙂
My favorite recipe for using zucchini to make cake, this zucchini bread recipe is super simple to make, perfectly moist and flavorful.
Another easy way of using zucchini in baking, the zucchini brownies with chocolate and cashew nuts are a decadent and delicious treat.
And if you would like to make a really impressive zucchini cake, why not try this one made with dark chocolate?
I hope you enjoyed looking through these easy zucchini recipes and I definitely hope you have found at least a couple that you would like to try this summer!
3 comments
This collection is much needed adina.
It’s funny that I was just thinking about what else could I do with all these zucchinis I have yesterday 🙂 I ended up stir-frying them usually, but I’d love to try out your creative approaches! Especially that zucchini feta pancakes!!! Can’t wait to try it this weekend!
wow, lovely dishes using zucchini. I rarely make zucchini cos my little one is quite fussy with it. Maybe I can try one of these recipes and see if he like them 🙂 have a nice weekend