“What a gorgeous Sudbury summer,” Jessica Nadel, marketing and education co-ordinator with Eat Local Sudbury Co-operative, wrote in an e-mail to Northern Life. “Sometimes, when the heat is too much to handle a big steaming bowl of pasta, fresh ribbons of zucchini can be a great alternative. Here’s a recipe making use of what’s in season. This dish can be enjoyed with fresh, crusty bread.”

Serves: 2
Ingredients:
1 lb zucchini (Dalew Farms grows these locally)
2 cups of tomatoes (from your backyard, perhaps?)
2 green onions or a handful of chives, chopped
1 tbsp cold-pressed canola oil from Pristine Gourmet (available at Eat Local Sudbury)
Small handful of fresh basil
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation instructions:

Place your tomatoes and half the basil in a blender or food processor and pulse until desired consistency is achieved.

The folks at Eat Local Sudbury roll out locally grown produce at Market Square each weekend. They also have a store located at 176 Larch St., and are open Monday to Friday, 11 a.m.- 6 p.m., and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information phone 521-6717 or go to www.eatlocalsudbury.com. Photo by Wendy Bird

Heat the oil in a saucepan over low-medium heat and sauté the onions. Add tomato mixture and simmer gently. While sauce is cooking, wash the zucchini. Using a vegetable peeler or mandolin, carefully peel thin “noodles” from the zucchini, stopping when you reach the seeds. Pile the “noodles” on plates and top with a few generous ladles of the marinara sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste and garnish with the remaining basil leaves.

For even more colour, use both green and yellow zucchini and, as an alternative on a hot summer night when you don’t want to turn the stove on, incorporate the oil and onions into the marinara while in the food processor and enjoy the dish raw.