Seasonal Sundays (Week 29) Zucchini Season!

Seven zucchini recipes, sides, salads, suppers, all for summer's hottest days. I hope you'll find one or two destined as "keepers" in your own recipe repertoire.

~ Skip Straight to the Good Stuff ~

~ PIN This ~

Welcome to Seasonal Sundays ...

Hey, all. Thank you for following Kitchen Parade, for checking in on these Sunday recipe collections. It means the world to be welcomed into your InBox and RSS readers and most of all, your kitchens. So thank you, thank you. And if you like this week's recipes, perhaps you'll share them with a friend or social circle?

It's a heady time to be a seasonal cook, yes?!

So for the next few weeks, count on me to tempt you with fruits and vegetables, suppers and sides and soups (yes! summer soups!) and smoothies and salads and and and and ...

Next up: zucchini and other summer squash! (Oh boy. Soooo many !!!!!! )

About the Photo By Popular Request, a Little Insight into the Top Image: It's not my photo but do I ever recognize simple rounds of zucchini, sprinkled with little more than a bit of salt, barely cooked in a skillet with just a touch of olive oil. Soooo good!

In Praise Of ...

THREADS! I've long given up Facebook and never got into Instagram but since maybe 2018, Twitter became a lifeline for insight on democracy, the court system, etc. I tend to follow writers, journalists, thinkers, democracy warriors.

But it took awhile to build my "follow" list and then, ugh, Elon took over and Twitter became a real mess.

Enter Threads. It's intuitive and it's getting more useful by the day. And I do recommend it!

Just download the app for your phone, there's no desktop version (yet, maybe ever? who knows?). If you're already on Instagram, sign in there and if you like, import your Instagram followers to Threads. (I didn't, they're all food people and I don't use Threads for food stuff.)

When you first sign in, your feed will be filled with celebrities and brands, especially those with huge Instagram followers. Don't worry, those (useless posts) disappear once you begin to follow those you want to hear from.

So now build your own follow list. My favorite way is to find someone whose work I appreciate, then look at their Following list. For me, this was Heather Cox Richardson, though she's still more active on Twitter than on Threads. For you, it might be me? Just search for Alanna Kellogg, check my Following list. (FYI I rarely generate new posts/threads, I'm more of a consumer here and my Following list reflects that.) Follow me or not, that's up to you, of course and I'm not looking to build a following.

Then watch your feed, actively looking for re-Threads from others you might want to follow.

In just a week, my Threads feed has gone from 100% celebrities/brands I could care less about to something that just like on Twitter, I find interesting and compelling ... but unlike Twitter, without the vitriole and vile.

PREPPING FOR EXTREME WEATHER With extreme heat in the southwest, with severe flooding in the northeast (to say nothing of heaviest rain ever in Japan, earliest ever wildfires in Canada, record water temperatures surrounding Florida, tornadoes in Chicago, fatal monsoon landslides in India ...), well, it's just a matter of time before any one of us is hit hard and fast.

Who has a plan?

Not us, but we will, asap. I found this list thought-provoking, way past the usual "make sure your devices are charged". Prep Your Tech for Extreme Weather (from the New York Times, no paywall)

LESS IS MORE, THE GARDEN EDITION Everything's in full bloom now, the plants large and healthy, the herbs ready to bolt, everything flaunting midsummer color and growth. But ... it's all feeling a bit, well, much?

So this week, I loosened things up, pruning lower branches of the maple tree that shades the herb garden, pulling the pots apart to give everything (especially my eyes) some breathing room.

Most of all, we "edited" a pergola, a lovely grapevine-shaded spot for our outdoor table.

First, we cut back an old pair of flowering bushes flanking the entry, they may well come out entirely next spring unless the new growth at the bushes' feet takes off. I'm thinking something big and showy, maybe hydrangeas or snowball bushes?

Next, we re-located a pair of white urns filled with flow-y greenery, also at the entrance.

What a difference! Suddenly we can actually "see" the simple almost-elegant lines of the pergola and the fruit-laden vine overhead. The bushes were hiding it! The urns were so white, they dominated the images! And the flowerbeds nearby? Suddenly they're at the forefront!

There's a life lesson in here, me thinks.

May I Suggest ... a Link?

Let me just presume that if you're reading this, well, you're both a cook and a recipe collector. Don't the two kinda go together? And that means you tuck aside interesting recipes all over the place and then, dang, where is that chicken recipe that looked so good anyway? Here's an idea. Start a folder on your phone, call it "Kitchen Parade" or "Alanna" or whatever makes best sense to you. Then save the recipes you're most interested in right there in one place. Easy Peasy.

• Start here?
• summer squash recipes from Kitchen Parade
• summer squash recipes from A Veggie Venture, a zucchini motherlode

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SEASONAL INSPIRATION:

• THE RECIPE Zucchini Carpaccio Super simple, a "no recipe" recipe.
• ANOTHER TAKE Simple Zucchini Ribbon Salad For extra tenderness, use small, young summer squash.

• THE RECIPE Quick Summer Squash & Tomato Sauté Barely cooked with a pile of garlic and a little tomato.
• ANOTHER TAKE Easy-Easy Barely Roasted Zucchini & Yellow Squash Big chunks, with a little bite.

• THE RECIPE Zucchini Spiral "Noodle" Salad A sexy, seductive zucchini-noodle salad. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Spiral Zucchini Noodle “Zoodle” Greek Salad

• THE RECIPE Feta Stuffed Zucchini Easy but looks impressive.
• ANOTHER TAKE Stuffed Peppers An old-fashioned favorite!

• THE RECIPE Zucchini Mushroom Tacos A big mess of zucchini, mushrooms, tomato and beans.
• ANOTHER TAKE Veggie Burritos with Cilantro Sauce Heaven on a plate, truly.

• THE RECIPE Quick Supper Salmon with Pesto Zucchini Noodles & Warm Tomatoes Simple-simple summer food.
• ANOTHER TAKE Roasted Salmon with Garden Hash & Creamy Avocado Sauce

• THE RECIPE Homemade Zucchini Relish Use up those giant zucchini from the garden. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Ripe-Tomato Relish with Peaches & Pears (Sharon's Pickle) A third-generation recipe from my Canadian family.

• VEGETABLES 101 The Miracle of Squash Blossoms Without squash blossoms, there would be no zucchini, no yellow squash, no ...
• The A-Z RECIPES Summer Squash Recipes And we do love our squash!

What's New?!

Wondering about a recipe from the last while? Check Recent Recipes from Kitchen Parade and Recent Vegetable Recipes from A Veggie Venture.

• THE COLLECTION Favorite Summer Soup Recipes Gazpachos, summer chowders, cold soups, raw blender soups, fruit soups, so many soups! (PIN This)
• & ANOTHER Favorite Summer Salad Recipes From sides to suppers, make-ahead to eat-it-now, simple to sumptuous, all special for summer. (PIN This)

Looking Back ...

• My 2020 Time Capsule An Excerpt: "Right now? Uncertain times at best, outright scary times at worst. It's easy to get down. It's understandable to mourn what isn't. It's natural to be worried. It's confusing / confounding / unsettling to face so much uncertainty on a timeline that stretches ... how many months? years? will it be? And yet ... in this Year that is 2020, I'm taking lessons from a ten-year old. Most days, he and I spend an hour or more on video calls just chatting about our days and then reading Harry Potter out loud. Now this kid's been through – and is going through – really tough times. And he's open about that. But you know what? I've never known a human being happier with what is, appreciating what's good now. For this kid, this wise little ten-year old, that half-full (nearly empty?) glass of his is completely full and spilling out the top."


• Melon Season! (Week 28) (PIN This)
• Summer Potluck Favorites (Week 27) (PIN This)
• Summer Ice Cream (Week 26) (PIN This)
• Summer Sandwiches (Week 25) (PIN This)
• Finding Juneteenth (Week 24) (PIN This)
• Summer Tips & Ideas, No Cooking Required (Week 23) (PIN This)
• Early-Summer Salads (Week 21) (PIN This)
• Spring Recipes to Make a Mom's Life Just a Little Bit Easier (Week 20) (PIN This)
• Strawberry Season (Week 19) (PIN This)

Déjà Vu

Something useful ... or interesting ... or ... fun ... from Seasonal Sundays, this same week.

ALEXA, CALL MY PHONE Anyone else constantly looking for a wayward phone? That's me, especially since joining the ranks of Apple Watch people that puts calls, texts, notifications, etc on the watch and the phone.

For a lost phone, there's no matching the "Find My Phone" app especially if you think your phone's been left somewhere. But for quick finds? Just tell Alexa to call your phone and in two secs, it's ringing! There it is, right where I put it!

A Quick Peek Into a Real-Life Kitchen

Just so you know, everything's not all pretty pictures around here, in the background is a pile of dirty dishes. And just like many (all?) of us, come five o'clock, I too draw a blank about what to make for supper, despite so many recipes I so dearly love. Here's a quick peek from the last week.

• THIS WEEK I tried my everyday bread recipe using a 24-year old starter, a gift from our friend Margi. I'm long out of the sourdough habit but this bread was extra-good.
• THE RECIPE Easy Everyday Bread for the Stand Mixer Better bread, no kneading by hand! (PIN This)

Just Updated!

• THE RECIPE Garden Pasta Salad with Mint Vinaigrette Light on pasta, generous with summer's best fresh veggies. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Greek Pasta Salad Loaded with veggies, dressed with a creamy feta vinaigrette.

• THE RECIPE Homemade Peach Syrup with Fresh Peaches Thick, caramel-y peach syrup. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Banana Syrup Such intense banana flavor for banana lovers!

Something to Read

Finally, something to recommend! And all thanks to my friend Margi ... we're always sharing book ideas but I feel like I get the better part of the bargain.

Hello Beautiful was already on hold on Libby, the library app for Kindle- and Audible-style books. But when a "skip the line" option popped up, I took.

What a book ... one of those you really don't want to end.

Call me grateful for finding a new author who's young and still writing ...

• THE BOOK Hello Beautiful (affiliate link) by Ann Napolitano


• BOOK CLUB BOOK IDEAS My Reading Group's Book List since 1994!
• NO TIME TO READ? How I Read 4X More This Year Than Last What I gave up, how I read so much, what I read.

Don't Be a Stranger ...

I'd love to hear from you. Comment, send me a quick e-mail (my current address is in the FAQs), dot-dash in Morse code, build a fire for smoke signals, launch a message in a bottle, send a Christmas letter, get the dog to yip, toss me a note wrapped in a rubberband, write a message in the sky, scratch a note in the sand, listen to a seashell, tuck a question into a plastic Easter egg, whatever.

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Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail, you'll find my current address in the FAQs. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. When you make my recipes, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below or better still, on the specific recipe's page.

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