AUGUST AND AN EASY ZUCCHINI TART

Note:  I am well aware it is September.  I started this in the beginning of August only to find my life delightfully interrupted by the birth of my fifth grandchild.  Meet Mia Jayne Adams! She is definitely a priority so the post is late being finished but the message  is still good–as is this Easy Zucchini Tart!

What can I say about August?

Growing up, it was the month of vacation for my family before the start of the school year in September.

We piled into the family car and drove the long road from Connecticut to the barrier beaches of North Carolina, stopping along the way at my Aunt’s house in the Shenandoah Valley. Once we crossed from Virginia to North Carolina we left the highway and drove through the low-country, past field after field of tobacco, the leaves deeply green and taller, it seemed, than the car.  Drying huts, with their doors open to receive the coming harvest, dotted the horizon.

As a parent, I continued the tradition with my own children.  Tobacco disappeared from the fields, replaced with corn and soy and other crops; but the heat of the summer remained the same and we still rolled down the windows when we came to the swing-bridge over the intercoastal waterway to the barrier islands, smelling the humid, salt-filled air.

Now I am a grandmother, and I wait on the kitchen porch to greet the cars filled with my children and their children as they pull in the drive.  The swing-bridge is gone, replaced by a high arching structure. There is no longer a need to wait for passing shrimp boats and sailboats before it is your turn to drive across the waterway.  But the children still chase sand pipers along the shore and jump in the waves, squealing with pleasure.  We use a golf cart now for the long walk back from the beach.  It’s easier than carrying tired little ones and hauling a wagon filled with chairs and sand toys.  The happy days still end on the back deck, facing the salt marsh, the smell of the barbecue filling the air.

Things change but somehow they stay the same.

This recipe for  Easy Zucchini Tart is quick and easy. It can be an appetizer, a light lunch, or side for a bigger meal.  You can change it up according to how you feel and what you have in your refrigerator—different cheeses, tomato sauce, fresh herbs or dried.  It will be forgiving and delicious!

I went a little light on the cheese this time. You can definitely use more. A good variation is to add some fresh corn and thinly sliced onions on top of the zucchini tart.

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EASY ZUCCHINI TART

Servings 4 people

Author Susan Murray, www.awomancooksinasheville.com

Ingredients

• 2-3 medium zucchini or yellow summer squash
• 1-2 tbs salt
• 1 sheet puff pastry
• ½ c or more grated mozzarella
• ¼ c grated parmesan
• 1-2 tsp dried oregano basil or thyme
• 1-2 tbs olive oil
• Optional: thinly sliced red onion, cherry tomatoes or other summer produce

Instructions

1. Thinly slice the zucchini and toss the slices in the salt. Set this aside to drain while the oven preheats.
2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
3. When the oven has preheated, unfold the puff pastry. You can use it as a square or roll it out a little to make a rectangle. Place the puff pastry on the prepared baking sheet and use a sharp knife to score a border about ½” from the rim. Be careful not to cut through the puff pastry.
4. Spread the grated mozzarella on the puff pastry, staying inside the delineated frame.
5. Use a paper towel to dry the zucchini slices. Arrange the zucchini slices in overlapping rows on top of the cheese. If desired top with thinly sliced red onion or dot with cherry tomatoes.
6. Spread the vegetables with grated parmesan and top with herbs. Drizzle olive oil over the filling.
7. Bake for 25 minutes, until the pastry is cooked on the bottom and the cheese is bubbling.
8. Cool slightly before serving.
9. Can be eaten hot or at room temperature.

Recipe Notes

Note:
You will be surprised at how much water comes out of the squash. Ideally you should let them sit for at least an hour before assembling the tart but, assuming you have sliced it thinly, the squash will forgive you if it is only 15-20 minutes.
You can use any cheese you have available. I have made this with cheddar and Swiss cheese.