This is probably my favorite Summer recipe. I only make it once a year (it takes a little time, but not too much and totally worth it) and I look forward to it every time. There’s several ways to make this and you can wing-it and make it yours. The ingredients make this dish. I use my own home grown and family grown, tomatoes, corn, and zucchini. The fresher and more local the better!
The photo pictured is from when I spiralized it and mixed everything together. I’ll make a note at the bottom on how you could do that. Hope you enjoy as much as I do! (The inspiration for this dish was from Sunset magazine many years ago. Here’s the closest link I found if you’d like to check that recipe out as well.
Ingredients
Vegetarian, Gluten free Serves 6-8 2-3 Zucchinis, sliced super thin 2 cups of (our family grown) corn 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 large summer tomato or 1/2cup small tomatoes 1/2 cup sweet onion, finely chopped 1/2t dried thyme 15oz Ricotta Cheese, I use part skim 1/2-3/4 cup parmasean cheese 1/4-1/2cup mozzarella or mild other cheese 1 large egg 1/4 cup fresh basil (or 1t dried) Oil / butter 1/4t Salt 1/4t Peper
Directions
- Heat 1T oil or butter over medium heat on the stove. Saute onion and garlic stirring continuously until beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. (You can also add 1/4-1/2 cup finely diced bell pepper, carrots or other summer vegetables you would like). Add corn and dried herbs and cook until just hot, about 2-3 more minutes.
- Transfer mixture to a bowl, stir in ricotta, 1/4 parmesan (you can add a little of your shredded mozzarella here as well if you like), egg, basil, pepper and salt and mix to combine. Preheat your oven to 375°.
- Butter or oil your baking dish (Anything roughly 9″x 13″ or 9″ x 9″ will work well). Layer thin zucchini slices, slightly overlapping, covering the bottom of the dish. Spread a layer of your corn and cheese mixture on top to cover. Lay a small amount or thin layer of summer tomatoes on top. Repeat layers of zucchini, corn mixture and top with another layer of zucchini (you can layer all ingredients until they are gone. I generally have 3 layers of zucchini, 2 of the cheese in between and one layer of tomatoes). Top with a thin layer of parmesan and mozzarella.
- Bake until golden brown and bubbling, about 45 minutes. Let sit for 10 minutes before eating. Enjoy!!
Notes:Â
- You can make this a day or two ahead. It keeps well in the fridge. Assemble through step 3 and wait to bake until you’re ready to eat. It will take closer to 55 minutes to bake right out of the fridge.
- If you’d rather spiralize your zucchini instead of layer them, spiralize all of your zucchini, mix together in step 2 along with little tomatoes in the quantity you desire.
- Zucchini can be sliced thin in rounds and over lapped or strips like noodles. I like the rounds because it’s easier to cut and serve.
