Hi folks. I’m back after something of a short hiatus, owing mainly to my recent pop-up. Thanks to everybody who came out and thanks to you all for your patience.
As a result, I’m playing a bit of catch-up; the last half of the summer was brutally busy for me, and I didn’t get a chance to leisurely cook through quite as much seasonal produce as I’d wished. No matter; there are still plenty of fine specimens at the market — even tomatoes are still rolling off the Hudson Valley’s tomato assembly lines — and depending where you are, you likely have a couple more weeks to pick up a nice zucchini.
If you do, I strongly recommend making this zucchini ricotta toast. I’d go so far as to say it’s the best thing you can make with the last, lingering summer squash of the year. (No offense to all the ratatouilles and spaghettis alla Nerano.) Sliced into thin rounds and quickly braised in oil, the zucchini softens a bit with a fistful of garlic and a shock of lemon to pull everything together. If you can make your own ricotta — and if you need a recipe for that, I’ve got you covered — it will really pay dividends, especially when it’s still warm from the pot. You can still make out the distant contours of summer here, but it’s savory enough for the fall chill rolling in.
Zucchini Ricotta Toast
Ingredients
2 slices of good bread (sourdough, miche, etc.)
2-3 small zucchini, sliced into thin rounds
4 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
Squeeze of lemon
Dried herbs (optional): fennel pollen, red pepper flakes, etc.
1 quart whole milk
1/3 cup of rice vinegar or white wine vinegar
Instructions
Make the ricotta: bring milk up to 195 degrees F while constantly stirring. Add in vinegar; let sit for 2 minutes then gently stir to separate curds from whey. Strain well; salt the cheese generously. Reserve the whey and add in a couple tablespoons of whey to the cheese if too solid.
Pan-fry the bread: set olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Fry the bread in the oil on one side until golden brown. Remove and clean out the pan.
Set a pan over medium-high heat. Add a generous amount of olive oil.
When the oil is hot, add the garlic; toss in oil and cook through without browning the garlic too much.
Add zucchini; salt to taste and toss in the oil and garlic. Add a small splash of water to help braise. Cook until the zucchini is soft and pliable but not mushy; they should bend but not completely break.
Remove the zucchini and garlic and reserve it in a bowl. Add a big squeeze of lemon. Salt to taste, and let cool.
Add a dollop of ricotta to the toast and spread it evenly, with a center indent to hold the zucchini. Scrunch up a handful of zucchini with your fingers and place it in the center of the ricotta.
Garnish with olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, flaky salt, and any dried herbs you wish.