Next week school starts for my kids and in the famous words of late night comedian Jimmy Fallon, this is when the expressions on kids and parents faces switch places. We’ve had a good run of summer finding refuge on 90 degree plus heat at the beach under the shade of trees while the kids swim in the water until the sun sets. Not until this week did I need to bring a sweatshirt as the sun goes down earlier and one can tell the air feels slightly crisp with a light scent of autumn to accompany it. Fall is coming sooner than later and this means I can use my oven again without fear it increase the temperature in our house to unbearable sleeping conditions.
Seattle folks are use to long extended summers well into September but this year will be different. I can already feel the change and I’m not the only one. I can hear small-talk conversations at the grocery store talking about how this summer felt really short, as if in our minds we’ve already moved on to autumn. At least for me I’m going to enjoy it as long as nature will allow. Next week will be September which signals to the community to enjoy the local weekly farmers’ market for only a little while longer. These last weeks are when I start intentionally looking for those gigantic zucchinis at the market just for making bread. They remind me of my dad when he would grow a garden full of a variety of squashes and bring one or two inside every night like a prized trophy to be shared and enjoyed by the family. He made it a point to point out the uniqueness of that particular squash and smiled with pride that he grew it himself. Since I didn’t grow zucchini this year, looking for those extra large ones at the farmers market is a small and strange way I stay connected with memories of my dad and childhood.
I recently made this sweet zucchini bread made with a lot of butter. If you’re looking for a healthy zucchini bread, this is not the recipe for you. It’s more like cake…. not too sweet but very moist. It’s a beautiful butter filled loaf – I make no apologies. If you find yourself with more zucchini than you know what to do with, here’s a great recipe you won’t regret making. Enjoy.
- butter, softened
- sugar
- eggs
- vanilla extract
- all-purpose flour
- baking powder
- cinnamon
- allspice
- salt
- shredded zucchini
- Find the full recipe on Alice's PBS Parents column here.
Have a look at the BBC Good Food site under stuffed marrow recipes, there are quite a few on there including one five star one called Baked Marrow Amatriciana. Strong flavors required!
Great to know, thanks for letting me know. Love discovering new zucchini recipes.
It’s comforting to think of your dad when you see zucchinis. In England they call the giant ones marrows and quite often stuff them with meat and rice. Maybe you could try that?