When zucchini is in season, it is typically sweet and plentiful. Many Italians celebrate by making this wonderful Italian Zucchini Risotto and often find ways to compliment the dish with the beautiful zucchini flowers. This risotto is a colorful and flavorful summer dish that can be served as an appetizer or an entree.

When I am in the mood for comfort food, Italian Zucchini Risotto is one of the first things to come to mind. Its creamy, and there is something healing about the process of stirring and adding the broth slowly that is reminiscent of the way foods must have been prepared many years ago. Making risotto is wonderful not only because almost anything can be added to a risotto, but because it cooks slowly allowing you enough time to prepare another dish simultaneously while occasionally reaching over to give it a stir. Add a nice glass of wine to complete the scene and help you completely unwind.

Here is what the dish looks like as we move through the process.

Adding broth a little at a time…..

Mixing in the Basil, Parsley and Parmesan Cheese…..

It’s important to note that you really must use arborio, carnaroli or vialone rice. You cannot substitute for other rices, otherwise you won’t get enough starch out of it in order to make your risotto creamy and not sticky. Also, don’t be worry about the butter. It’s all natural and and skimping will not give you the same flavor or results. When it comes to butter I usually make every attempt to minimize or avoid it all together, but there are cases like when it’s really necessary. There comes a time when it really pays off to indulge, and this Italian Zucchini Risotto is a beautiful indulgence. If you want to be creative, try substituting some mushrooms, proscuito, fresh peas or any combination of the three.  The results will be equally delicious.

Here is ready to be plated. You can almost feel the creaminess!

I am confident that you will enjoy making it, and eating it will be even better!

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Italian Zucchini Risotto

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 55 minutes minutes

Servings 6 servings

Author My Global Cuisine

Ingredients

• 6-7 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock
• 7 tablespoons of butter
• 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
• 3 zucchini about 3/4 pound, diced
• 1 large onion chopped very fine
• 1 parsley spring minced, and 1/4 cup minced
• 2 to 3 fresh basil leaves minced
• 1 1/2 cups Italian short-grain rice Arborio, Carnaroli or Vialone Nano
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

• In a medium sauce pan heat up the broth and keep it at simmer.
• In a large skillet or heavy saucepan, combine 3 TBSP of butter and the olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add the zucchini and sauté, stirring until beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, transfer the zucchini to a bowl and reserve.
• Return the saucepan to the heat, add the remaining butter and heat over medium heat. Add the onion, parsley sprig and basil, and sauté, stirring often, until the onion is soft, about 7 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to medium, stir in the rice and saute, stirring, until the rice starts to stick to the pan. Immediately add a 4-ounce ladleful of the stock at a time.
• Cook, stirring until the stock is absorbed. Continue adding stock in this fashion and cooking until the rice is al dente, about 20 minutes.
• Remove from the heat, stir in the zucchini, remaining parsley and parmesan cheese.
• Serve immediately. Enjoy it!

The post Italian Zucchini Risotto appeared first on My Global Cuisine.

This Grilled Zucchini, or as they call it in Italy zucchini gligliate, is a popular Italian dish that can be served as a side dish, or as an appetizer. At home I serve as a side dish, alongside my previous recipe, Chicken Escalope with Lemon Sauce. The first time I tried grilled zucchini made this way I was in Italy, and I thought to myself, how could something so healthy taste this good? The secret is in the dressing, which I will also share with you in this recipe. You can just grill the zucchini and serve that way, but in my opinion, the dressing really makes this dish. This grilled zucchini is also a great side dish to have with grilled steak or chicken or to add to a sandwich. If you are not into zucchini, you could substitute for eggplant, or grill both together. The technique is the same. When making this grilled zucchini, keep in mind that you must let the zucchini sit in salt for at list 30 minutes in order to extract the water.

Once the zucchini releases the water,  wash them well, and pat dry with paper towels. Grill afterwords.

I hope you enjoy making this grilled zucchini dish as much as I do. I made a big batch last night and I had leftovers for my sandwich today. You can refrigerate the dressing, but make sure you bring to room temperature before serving again. Enjoy!

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Grilled Zucchini

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 40 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 4 servings

Author My Global Cuisine

Ingredients

• 4 large zucchini
• 1 TBSP of salt
• 4 garlic cloves finely chopped
• 1 handfull of Italian parsley - flat leaved parsley roughly chopped
• 3 TBSP of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Italian peperoncino or 1/4 TSP or less of red pepper flakes crushed
• a pinch of salt

Instructions

• Slice the zucchini length ways into (1/4 inch) strips than cover them generously with salt for 30 min before rinsing and drying them. Grill the zucchini on a griddle pan in a single layer in pan, or under the grill. Grill for 4 minutes, turning after 2 minutes. For tender zucchini slices, grill for an extra 1 minute on each side.
• To make the dressing: On a cutting board, chop together the garlic, parsley and peperoncino. Transfer to a small bowl. Stir in the olive oil, and add a pinch of salt. Serve on top of the zucchini or on the side.

The post Grilled Zucchini appeared first on My Global Cuisine.