Gluttony

It's August! Already! Which means only one thing - courgettes everywhere!

So if you planted one too many courgettes in your garden, you might be running out of things to do with them (tell me about it - including the pattypans & summer squashes, I have 21 of them in my garden!) You can freeze them for the months in the year where they're overpriced & watery in the supermarkets, which is a doddle. Just chop them up (remove the seeds of the big 'uns so they don't collapse into a watery mush during cooking) & fry them in a little oil, or roast them in a hot oven for 20-30 mins. Leave to cool & tip into plastic bags or containers & chuck in the freezer. In the grimmest parts of January, they'll still be perfect for pasta, risotto, lasagna or whatever it is you like your courgettes in. (or you could just do what my Mother-in-law does & give them to friends, family & anyone too slow to work out that you've just dumped a carrier bag of marrows on them!)

So over the next few days I'll be posting some recipes & ideas for what to do with them all. For starters, here's something really simple. So painfully simple I hate to even call it a recipe

Lemon Roasted Squash
3-4 courgettes, pattypans, summer squashes, you get the idea (I used crookneck squash, which I grow because they're so damned pretty)
1 lemon
1 tbs olive oil
50g diced feta
2-3 small bulbs of garlic (optional)
salt & pepper

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/G6. Halve the courgettes (if you have round or bulbous squashes, scrape the seeds out to leave a hollow for the feta) & place in a shallow baking dish with the garlic bulbs. Add the oil, the juice of the lemon, salt & pepper & toss until the courgettes & garlic are well coated. Scatter (or tuck into cavities) the feta over the top & bake for 30 mins, or until the courgettes are tender & the feta browned. Halve the garlic bulbs & squeeze over the courgettes. It will be buttery & sweet, and nothing like fried or raw garlic.
For a bit of variety, scatter with a handful of chopped oregano, mint or parsley. Or use mozzerella or goats cheese, or combine grated hard cheese with panko or breadcrumbs & scatter over the top before baking.

Om nom nom!