Pattypans in my garden, oh my!

picture from the internet. just wanted to show that they come in a range of colors so you know them when you see them! I grew the light green ones.

Anyone who has come within passing distance of me in the past month has probably been given some pattypan squash. Everyone has looked confused and when receiving said bounty, and the conversation always goes like this:

"Thank you!!!  Ummm... What is this?"

"It's a pattypan squash.  Basically, think zucchini when you look at it. You don't have to peel or seed it before cooking. It has a mild flavour, and can be cooked anyway you can imagine!"

"But. What do you do with it?"

So! To all of you that I have encountered, and all of you who I will encounter, and all of you who have stumbled on this blog because you have a healthy curiosity about pattypans, this is what you can do:

1. Steam them. By far the simplest and my favourite.  Throw them in an inch of water and cook them til they feel right when you poke them with a fork. Drain, and add buttersaltpepper. Delish!

2. Break out the Shake and Bake. Seriously. Slice. Coat. Bake. Easy-peasy!

3. Make soup. But don't be fussy about it. Cook pattypans in broth, then throw the whole works in a blender. Ta-dah! A delicate, sweet, light soup that even my kid liked!

of course, the sillies came out with the camera, but she did like the soup- honest!

4. Mix with other veggies from the garden, toss with a bit of olive oil and your favourite veggie spice and throw on the grill topper on the barbeque.

5. Like zucchini, they are good when they are small and they will grow to rather startling sizes if you take your eyes off of them for a second.  They are also good when they are large too.  You can even stuff and roast them.  I have not tried this recipe yet, but it looks like a gooder. Anything with bacon is good eats to me:0)  I think a quinoa stuffing would be good too. The nuttiness of the grain would pair well with the sweetness of the squash.

6. Roast them. On their own, or as part of a stew. Very yummy!

7. Eat them raw! This is my favorite in-the-garden snack, after peas. They are good added to salads. And in fact, we made coleslaw with grated pattypans too. Just use the pattypans in place of cabbage (or in addition to, if that is your whim) and make your coleslaw as per usual.

Or... what can you come up with? I want to know as I still have around a hundred kilograms of them around here:0)