Farm markets and stands? Are you kidding? At this time of year the zucchini bandits are out in force, and if you leave your car unlocked overnight you're likely to find a bag of them on the back seat come morning.
Anyway, here's a slightly fancy way of preparing them. BTW, all the summer squashes are interchangeable in recipes:
Summer Squash Timbale
4 cups summer squash, shredded
Salt
2 tbls olive oil
1 cup onion, chopped fine
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbls fresh herbs, minced
5 eggs, beaten
2 cups heavy cream
Black pepper to taste
butter
1 cup dry bread crumbs
Parmesan cheese, grated
Preheat oven to 350.
Sprinkle squash generously with salt. Set in colander and let drain 30 minutes. Gather squash and squeeze to release moisture (I use a tea towel and wring it well)
Heat oil in skillet over medium high heat. Add onion and saute until soft. Add garlic and saute one minute longer. Remove from heat and toss with squash. Stir in minced herbs. Add beaten eggs and cream and season to taste.
Butter bottom and sides of six individual ramikins or pudding cups. Dust mods with bread crumbs. Fill with squash mixture.
Transfer to a deep baking pad and add hot water to reach 2/3 up the sides of the molds. Bake, uncovered, about 45 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes. Loosen with a sharp knife and unmold onto platter. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
You can eat these as is or ring the changes on toppings and sauces. I particularly like them with a roasted red pepper coulis spiked up a bit.
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