In August, your friends who have gardens–and sometimes even perfect strangers–will hand you a paper bag full of zucchini. After you’ve smiled politely and said thank you, what next? This article by Loretta Keller, chef/owner of Bizou in San Francisco, will give you some interesting ideas for cooking zucchini. She describes the ideal zucchini and tells us how to select them at the store, as well as how to pick the older zucchini, and how to prepare them for cooking.

You’ll also learn about Keller’s favorite ways to prepare zucchini: sliced and sautéed; roasted; grilled; batter-fried; and cut into “noodles.”  Each of these methods contains tempting ideas and useful information. When the next bag full of zucchini comes your way, you’ll welcome it. Recipes include: Zucchini-Tomato Fans; Curried Zucchini Soup; Zucchini “Noodles”; Mint & Basil Pesto; and Batter-Fried Zucchini & Their Blossoms.