Zucchini Carpaccio

I have to admit that I don’t get any magazine subscriptions. Not even food ones. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t like to look at their holiday-themed and seasonal ingredient inspired meals! So I look at the Gourmet and Bon Appetit archives on epicurious. When I had some squash that I knew wouldn’t last long (I don’t even remember why I bought it) I browsed through some recipes until I found this and although it interested me enough to add to my recipe box, I needed to make a lot of changes.

The great thing about this recipe is how few ingredients you need. It also didn’t take very long to make. And it was really delicious. A nice spring side-dish, and a good way to use your extra zucchini and squash.

Ingredients:

  • 2 medium zucchini, sliced on a mandolin or v-slicer
  • 1/2 cup ricotta cheese, either homemade or store-bought
  • 15 basil leaves
  • 1 teaspoon cream cheese
  • Fresh ground pepper and salt, to taste
  • 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest

Directions:

1. Broil zucchini slices for 2 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

3. Layer zucchini slices on the bottom of a baking dish, overlapping slightly, until the whole bottom is covered (this should be about 1/2 of the broiled zucchini, depending on the size of your zucchinis and dish).

4. In a mini food processor or blender, blend 20 of the basil leaves and the cream cheese. Sprinkle mixture over the first layer of zucchini.

5. Place the remaining zucchini on top of the first layer, slightly overlapping each slice until the entire first layer is covered.

6. Sprinkle with the ricotta cheese.

7. Julienne the remaining 5 basil leaves and sprinkle on top.

8. Sprinkle with the olive oil and lemon zest.

8. Warm in oven for 5 minutes and serve.