Nutritious Notes about Zucchini

I am getting a ton of zucchini right now in my garden. Here is some information for you:

Zucchini is low in calories, easily digested and high in vitamin A, potassium and iron. It is an excellent addition to a regular diet and beneficial for those taking medication for high blood pressure as it helps replace lost minerals. Even the blossoms may be eaten during the growing season, excellent in salads.

How to Harvest, Use and Store
Zucchini is best used fresh, as refrigeration reduces flavor. Although zucchini can grow to spectacular sizes the larger the fruit the less flavor. Zucchini skins become thick and tough and the meat spongy and tasteless with large seeds. Unless your end goal is buffet boats or edible veggie bowls it is best to pick them when they are 6 to 10 inches long, softball size for the eight ball variety. The very young fruits are picked with the blossoms still attached as fingerlings and are prized by gourmet gardeners.


Zucchini is one of the most versatile vegetables in the culinary arts. It can be used raw, steamed, grilled, fried, baked, stuffed, sautéed, pickled or preserved. It is easy to prepare , no peeling required, and can be frozen after minimal preparation for winter use.

(From The Fruit and Vegetable Stand by Barry Ballister, the Overlook Press, Peter Mayer Publishers, Inc., 2002--via the weblink: http://gocfa.org/gardens/2007-08-Newsletter.pdf)