Kurella's Kitchen: Summer squash
It goes without saying that we’ve had a few strange years, and it seems to just keep coming at us.
Hearing that the severe storm that ripped through the St. Joseph County area on June 13 did major damage to farms has given me pause, and reason to write about it.
Brenda Hubbard at Corey Lake Orchards reflected on the storm: straight-line, damaging wind, hail for nearly 20 minutes and flooding.
"Needless to say, it destroyed most of our crops," Hubbard said.
With the vegetables in the fields pulled out and replanted, and hail damaging most of the fruit, Corey Lake Orchards, like many other farmers in the area, are facing losses that are devastating and heartbreaking, and call for the community to rally and offer support by visiting farm stands and buying what is available, no matter its storm-weathered appearance.
Fruit and vegetables do not need to look perfect to taste good. When we were kids, we had to cut around worms (and their holes) in apples to help Mom make amazingly delicious apple slices.
Back then it was no different than today. The most important thing about produce is to buy the freshest you can get, and it doesn’t get any fresher than straight from a local farm, no matter how it looks!
Summer squash is in season right now, and when I spied an attractive air fryer recipe by Jill McOwen at foodtasticmom.com, it was so beautiful, I couldn’t let it pass.
McOwen, a single mother living in Cincinnati with two high school-aged children, told me this: “Cooking has been my passion since middle school, when I was planning dinner parties for my friends.”
That led her into catering as a "side hustle" throughout her 20s and 30s. McOwen said her ability for recipe development seemed to be what was driving her food engine.
“People were always asking for my recipes, so I started (the blog) as a convenient place to share recipes," she said.
The blog reaches its 10-year milestone in September 2022. McOwen is pleased that her side-hustle passion for food has morphed into a full-time position.
“I'm incredibly lucky to make a living as a food blogger,” she said.
McOwen has shared the recipe with us, and we can make it using summer squash from our local farmers to help support them, too.
To find more of McOwen’s awesome recipes, visit foodtasticmom.com. Enjoy!
Laura Kurella is an award-winning recipe developer and food columnist who enjoys sharing recipes from her Michigan kitchen. She welcomes comments at laurakurella@yahoo.com.
Foodtastic Mom’s air fryer squash
3 small yellow squash
2 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup marinated feta cheese crumbled
Wash and slice the yellow squash. Toss the squash with the vegetable oil, oregano, salt, and pepper. Add the squash in a single layer to your air fryer basket. It's OK if they overlap a bit. Cook at 400 degrees for 7-8 minutes. You want the squash to be fork tender. Remove the squash from the air fryer basket. Top with feta cheese and serve. Note: This recipe may be made in a toaster or conventional oven that’s preheated to 400 degrees. Prep Time: 6 minutes; Cook Time: 8 minutes; Servings: 4.
Sister Jeanne’s zucchini nut bread
God bless my recently departed sister, Jeanne, for giving me this well-loved recipe. Asked to make it so often, she took to handing out the recipe instead, along with the advice that it develops a moist complexity that comes with age, so it tastes better every day.
1 cup grated zucchini
1 egg
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup oil or applesauce
1 1/2 cups flour, all-purpose
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 unrefined mineral sea salt
1/4 teaspoon finely shredded lemon rind
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, beat together zucchini, honey, egg, and oil or applesauce. In a medium size bowl, mix flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg, salt, and lemon peel. Slowly incorporate flour mixture into zucchini mixture. Fold in walnuts. Grease an 8.5x4.5x2.5 loaf pan. Pour bread mix into pan and bake until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (about 60 to 70 minutes). Cool on a wire rack. Yield: 8 to 10 servings.
This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Take advantage of summer squash from local growers
