Kaki, remember making sauteed zucchini at my place this summer, and we both just raved about our love of zucchini?  How you can use it in so many ways, but that simply fried up in a pan you could really get its own flavor to shine?  Well, if you haven’t already, you have to try Smitten Kitchen’s Quick Zucchini Saute.

I made it last night as the side dish for a friend’s birthday dinner.  [Entree was the always lovely Baked Tofu with White Wine and Dill (which is from Peter Berley, but which I found through Big Girls Small Kitchen) over brown rice.  Yum.]  (Brackets.  Parentheses.  You had to know this was going to happen.)  

But the zucchini saute, right.  Kaki, it’s two tablespoons of almonds.  Sauteed in oil until golden-brown.  Then you add one zucchini, cut in matchsticks.  Saute for one minute.  One minute!  Add salt and pepper at the table to taste.

It was so easy.  So quick!  And so tasty.  It had crunch, lightness, freshness… I think I’m in love.

Also, two ounces of sliced almonds from the bulk section at HEB was less than $.50.  So was one zucchini.  Amazing food for $.50 a serving, yes please.

What I’m saying is start adding nuts to your zucchini when you’re just going to quickly fry it up for a side dish.  Oh, I have leftover pumpkin seeds, now that I think about it!  I’ll try that next.

TGIF!,

Caitlin

P.S. I have my first catering gig tomorrow!  Lunch for nine for a friend’s work.  Did a take on Smitten Kitchen’s Lemony Kale Salad, stuffed peppers, and my mom’s Apricot Shortbread Bars.  As long as the A-bars (their nickname in my family; we’ve made them so many times that why bother with multiple syllables?) cooked through (doubled it for a 9×13 pan instead of the normal 8×8), it should go well!  You should have seen me fretting over the oven, though; are they done?  I’ll wait two more minutes.  No, the pecans will burn, I’ll take them out now.  Oy!