We have had a very bountiful garden so far this year. I have been canning, freezing, drying, baking, sharing and barely able to keep up with the abundance of fresh veggies. This was a picture of my first day's yield earlier this summer. (Oh, and the eggs we got from our backyard chickens too!)
Last year I did not have the best of luck with zucchini and squash. At first, it seemed they were doing great but then one day I noticed we had an attack of the squash bug.....and within a couple of days my plants were gone.....the bugs soon moved onto the cucumbers and then eventually the cantaloup. So I decided that this year I would plant a TON of zucchini plants so I could get my harvest done early and get some in the freezer. I planted 4 plants and I am glad I only planted 4! Whew! I have been completely overrun with zucchini. I am not sure what happened to the squash bugs....but they didn't come around yet this year. Maybe it is the chickens keeping them down? or maybe the marigolds I planted around the garden....I've read that helps keep bugs away.....
After making zucchini bread one day, I decided to go ahead and shred the rest of the zucchini I had on hand and freeze it so it was all ready to go this winter! I froze in 2-cup increments (as called for by my favorite recipe). I have also found a breakfast recipe (will share later) that we love that calls for 3 cups of chopped zucchini, this week I plan to freeze more zucchini chopped in 3-cup increments so we can enjoy that recipe as well this winter. So love having my garden this year!
Do you have zucchini overload? What are your favorite recipes? favorite ways to preserve for later use? I'd love to hear your ideas!!
