When I got home from the Machias Blueberry Festival, (more on that next week,) Toby announced happily that he had invented a delicious way to cook summer squash. It turns out that it has three or four ingredients; can be made in about thirty minutes, if that; is satisfying but not heavy, perfect for a hot summer supper.
If Toby had been reading foodie magazines or various food blogs, which he has not, he would have run into this combination before. It is less a recipe, as you will see, than a variable set of ideas. If Toby, and, on many occasions I myself, had to follow an actual recipe to make supper, we’d never eat. For ordinary suppers, we rely on casual combinations like this one.
So what Toby did was take a summer squash—I’ve been growing a pretty one called Zephyr, long yellow with slightly curving neck with a little band of light green around the bottom—chopped into dice, which he sautéed with olive oil, a little chopped garlic, salt, and pepper, until it was just crunchy tender. Then he dropped three or four dollops of ricotta cheese on it, stirred it around, added a little tomato sauce, a splash of red wine, cooked it another couple of minutes, and ate.
He made it again for both of us, using zucchini this time, and I dug out some French bread to mop up the sauce, and we made it our whole supper on a hot, humid night when all anyone might want to eat was ice cream or lettuce. I observed it would work well over spaghetti or fettuccini, or mixed with pasta like penne or shells. He observed that he liked the combination better made with the yellow squash.
Variations? Onions instead of or in addition to garlic. Oregano or basil added. A white version with pesto instead of tomato sauce and a splash of white wine. No wine at all. With pasta. Make enough to be a whole meal, or just enough for a vegetable side dish to go with anything on the grill. If you like a little heat, add chopped jalapenos. Vegan or lactose intolerant? Skip the ricotta. Meat eater? Add a little cooked chicken or shrimp. How much squash? A big one for two or three people and a little one or part of one, for one person.
- Summer squash, yellow or zucchini
- Olive oil
- Small onion, chopped, and/or chopped clove of garlic
- Approximately a third to half cup of ricotta
- A generous spoonful of tomato sauce
- A splash of wine
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Chop the squash into bite-sized dice or chunks.
- Put a little olive oil in a saute pan, add the onions and/or garlic, and cook until the onion softens slightly.
- Stir in the squash and cook for about five minutes or until the squash is barely tender.
- Stir in the ricotta and tomato sauce, and cook for another three minutes.
- Taste, add salt and pepper and any other desired seasonings.
