By Melissa Corkhill
07th August 2015
Chocolate Courgette Icecream
1 courgette, 1 cup cashew nuts, 1 cup water, 1/2 cup cocoa powder, 1/2 cup honey
Blend all ingredients together in a blender until smooth as possible. Place in an ice-cream maker and follow instructions or if, like me, you don’t have one, I use a tupperware. Place the liquid in the base of a large tupperware and put it in the freezer. Every hour or so, take it out and give it a stir. It should be ready top eat within about 4-5 hours.
Griddled Courgettes with Mint and Lemon
500g courgettes; 1 clove garlic, crushed; 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil; finely grated zest and juice of 1 unwaxed lemon; 2 mild green chillies, deseeded and finely chopped; 25g vegetarian parmesan or hard cheese, coarsely grated; fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
1 Preheat the barbecue or heat a griddle pan until nice and hot.
2 Cut the courgettes into 5mm slices lengthways and place in a large bowl with the garlic and half of the olive oil. Toss gently to coat.
3 Place the courgette slices on the barbecue or griddle pan and cook for five minutes until tender and slightly charred.
4 Remove to a serving plate and scatter with the lemon zest and juice and chopped chilli. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil and leave to cool and marinate.
5 Before serving, scatter with the cheese, chopped mint and season with freshly cracked pepper to taste.
Minted Courgette Soup with Yogurt
1 tsp cornflour; 1.5 litres vegetable stock; 2 Maris Piper potatoes, peeled and diced; 1 small onion, chopped; 2 cloves garlic, chopped; 4 courgettes, grated; handful fresh mint, stalks removed; 200g organic Greek yogurt
1 In a pan, blend the cornflour to a smooth paste with a little of the vegetable stock, then pour in the rest of the stock.
2 Stir in the diced potato, onion and garlic and bring to the boil. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.
3 Add the grated courgette and cook for a further 5-8 minutes.
4 Remove from the heat and stir in the mint leaves. Using a hand-held blender, whizz until smooth.
5 Season to taste, then ripple the yogurt through the soup. Ladle into individual bowls and serve with lightly toasted pitta fingers.
Courgette Bread
1 small courgette; 75g butter, softened, plus extra for greasing; 150g runny honey; 2 medium eggs; juice of 1/2 lemon; 190g self-raising flour; 40g almonds, finely chopped; 2 tbsp natural yogurt
1 Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan160°C/ gas 4. Grease and line a 900g loaf tin.
2 Grate the courgette into a sieve and leave for 5 minutes. Squeeze out any excess moisture and set aside.
3 Beat the butter, honey and eggs until smooth. Fold in the lemon juice – it will curdle slightly, but don’t worry.
4 Combine the flour with the courgette and almonds. Fold in the butter mixture and the yogurt. If the batter is stiff, add a spoonful more yogurt to loosen.
5 Pour into the tin and bake for 50 minutes, or until the top is golden. 6 Insert a skewer – if it comes out clean, it’s done; if not, cook for a further 10-15 minutes. Cool in the tin. This makes a great teatime snack served sliced with butter and homemade lemonade!
The lovely home grown courgette image is courtesy of All in a Pickle, where you can buy spiced courgette chutney for £2.80.
