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Smashed Baby Zucchini Bruschetta Makes 8 bruschetta The key to this dish is making sure the zucchini is cooked enough, as al dente zucchini won't smash well. You want it soft and tender, and for those delicious zucchini juices to meld with the pecorino cheese. I like serving this for brunch with scrambled eggs or a frittata, but it's beyond tasty just spooned over toasted bread. Directions 1. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil over high heat and season generously with kosher salt. This is blanching water (see page 10), and I like mine to be salty like the ocean, about 1 tablespoon of salt per quart
of water. Prepare a medium bowl with ice water for shocking. Blanch the zucchini coins for 4 minutes, until soft and tender but still retaining their shape. Drain the zucchini and plunge into the ice water. Use your hands to agitate the coins in the ice water to chill the zucchini quickly. Drain in a colander for 10 minutes. 2. In a medium bowl, toss the zucchini coins with the olive oil, mint, and a few pinches of coarse sea salt. Use an old-school potato masher to smash them until the zucchini is a spoonable consistency yet there are still visible chunks. Stir in the pecorino. Spoon the smashed zucchini over grilled or toasted bread and garnish with a few leaves of mint and more grated pecorino. Ingredients Kosher salt 1 pound baby zucchini, cut into ¼-inch-thick coins 2 tablespoons superspecial extra-virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh mint, plus more leaves for garnish Coarse sea salt (like Maldon) ¼ cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano, plus a little more for garnish 8 slices of ciabatta or rustic bread, grilled or toasted