Zucchini = Magic

"Check out those melons!"

He pointed his tattooed arm and stared, jaw dropped open.
He waded through the clumps of (mostly) women perched on mulch and hard San Diego dirt until he found them. Cantaloupe the size of softballs rested on overturned pots to keep their creamy white rinds dry. His smile was immense as he cradled one in his palm.
"Awesome!"

Other students of various ages and genders picked tiny gerkins off winding vines and popped them into their mouths. Some let lavender buds slip through fingers and sprinkle on the path. One peered up into the seedy pockmarked face of a giant sunflower.

This small farm is magical for the sheer volume it produces- not only in vegetables but in community interest.

I am now an intern at both Seeds at City Farm at San Diego City College and Wild Willow Farm in Imperial Beach. I get to play in the dirt and plant seeds and pick vegetables and bring them home to adorn my pans and plates. And I get to watch students and visitors (and feel myself very quickly) fall in love with the farms.

I'm going to be cooking a lot. I'm going to have boxes of vegetables piled on my counters.

Good thing I love vegetables. And cooking. And eating.

Here's what I made tonight:


Pan Fried Zucchini (from Wild Willow Farm)

3 medium zucchini, sliced crosswise
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4- 1/2 cup flax seed meal
dash garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup parsley, finely chopped (optional)

Toss zucchini in olive oil. Mix all other ingredients together in a large bowl, sprinkle over zucchini, then toss until zucchini is well coated. Heat oil in pan on medium high heat. Fry zucchini slices in batches until tender, flipping the little guys once. Eat.

I could give you a serving size but since I ate all three sliced up zucchini myself (mostly while standing in the kitchen frying the next batch) I would be lying about such things.