Simple Vegetables: Zucchini

This one was not really sparked by the dining hall, but more by Wollaston's actually having zucchini in the fresh produce section. I believe I bought one zucchini, and it came in slices instead of the whole thing, changing my recipe slightly, but not by that much. It's really simple, and only requires something resembling a grill to make. (My cast-iron grilling pan worked well.) This is a very popular way to make vegetables, so its not very original, but at least very tasty.

1. Obtain a grilling implement. Preheat to just over medium heat, as we're trying to soften up the veggie a little, not blacken it entirely. Aim for a temperature that will place gentle grill marks on the vegetable, to give slight hints of flavor, but beware of burning.
2. If using a whole zucchini, I would usually simply cut them in half, and grill. As I was using pre-sliced zucchini and a cast-iron grilling skillet, after greasing the cast-iron with some olive oil, you can olive oil the slices and grill. Regardless, leave the skin on. Removing the skin is a waste of time, and helps hold together the rest of the zucchini from turning to mush.
   
3. If you've placed the grill/skillet on the right temperature, you should be looking at quiet sizzling, and a couple minutes per side for the chips, maybe five minutes for the halves. The zucchini will become a little bit squishy as it cooks (a good sign), and pretty much once you heat it through it can be served.
4. Upon completion of the cooking step, remove from heat, and add a little salt and pepper, if so desired.
   

Several notes to be noted:

• I attempted this recipe indoors with olive oil on the zucchini and I mixed in garlic powder, salt and pepper. When grilling, a limited amount of smoke arose from the zucchini, as I think the garlic powder and peppercorns burned slightly. In the future, I would just use oil to keep them from sticking, and add spices after cooking, or while cooking the last side to prevent burning.
• With zucchini halves, I suggest a slightly lower heat, and a slightly longer time. This will allow the zucchini to cook through more, which makes it taste better. The other nice thing about zucchini halves is you only grill the seed-side, and the skin side stays nicely crunchy even after cooking.
• This recipe works for yellow squash too (zucchini is a summer squash, lesson learned), and maybe cucumbers and any other vegetable you might care to try it with. Except tomatoes. I can imagine they would just kinda lose all the seeds, making a terrible mess on the grill.