Turn A Glut Of Courgettes Into A Moreish Crunchy Snack For Pizza Night

Anyone who has ever grown courgettes will cognize that, travel highest season, you person to get inventive pinch nan abundance and travel up pinch caller ways to usage them earlier they move to marrows aliases vanish and melt backmost into nan soil. One fabulous measurement to navigator up a glut is scarpaccia, an Italian classical that’s akin to farinata and a distant relative of pizza. Thinly sliced courgettes are degorged by tossing them successful oversea brackish to extract their juices, then, existent to Italian thrift, nan flavourful liquid is utilized to make a batter that’s past reunited pinch nan courgettes earlier baking into a thin, crisp slice.

Scarpaccia

Zucchini aliases courgettes are a type of summertime squash that grows truthful prolifically that moreover nan astir amateur horticulturist, specified arsenic myself, is often inundated pinch a rate harvest of agelong greenish gourds. The leaves, stems and flowers are each edible (the greenery tin beryllium utilized for illustration immoderate different leafy greenish – it’s awesome simply sauteed pinch garlic, citrus and nutmeg).

Those who don’t person nan luxury of increasing their ain still use from nan seasonal abundance, however, because nan value of courgettes drops to overmuch much affordable levels, moreover astatine nan astir able of farmers’ markets. When I was increasing up successful Dorset, I retrieve seeing baskets of nan things connected plot walls, conscionable near retired successful return for a aid of a fewer pennies.

500g courgettes, topped and washed
500g caller potatoes, washed
Sea salt
1 achromatic aliases reddish onion, peeled and thinly sliced
3 sprigs caller rosemary, aliases thyme aliases oregano, leaves picked
150g wholemeal flour – wheat, spelt aliases plain white
50g polenta, aliases semolina aliases breadcrumbs, positive other to finish
Olive oil

Finely portion 100g each of nan courgettes and potatoes and group aside. Grate nan remainder into a colander group complete a bowl, adhd 2 teaspoons of oversea brackish and flip to coat. Place a sheet and a weight straight connected apical of nan courgettes and potatoes, and time off to degorge for an hour. Working pinch a fistful astatine a time, compression nan courgette and murphy operation complete nan bowl, to cod their juices, past measurement retired 120ml of nan liquid (if request be, apical up pinch water).

In a bowl, operation nan sliced onion, herb leaves, flour (and polenta, past operation successful nan 120ml reserved juice and operation to nan consistency of heavy barroom batter; adhd much liquid aliases flour arsenic required.

Line a ample baking tray pinch unbleached baking insubstantial and brushwood pinch oliva oil. Spread nan batter complete nan insubstantial truthful it’s astir 5mm thick, past put nan sliced vegetables connected apical successful neat alternating rows. Drizzle pinch much oliva oil, sprinkle pinch a small polenta and a pinch of oversea salt, past cook successful a 240C (220C fan)/475F/gas 9 oven for 45-55 minutes, until golden, crisp and charred successful places.