This is the time of the year when a lot of the online garden forums are taken up with people desperately seeking what to do with all the courgettes /zucchinis their gardens are producing.  And there are plenty of delicious things to do – slicing them up length wise, brushing with oil and tossing on the BBQ. Grating and squeezing out the excess fluid and turning into fritters. Grating and using them as the basis for various delicious chocolate treats such as brownies, muffins or cakes. Or even just steaming lightly and serving on the side with your meal.

And then there is the question of what to do with those ones who have transitioned from tender courgettes and are heading towards that other state that that the modern palate is not so keen on; the marrow.   My grandmother would have been more familiar with a marrow and probably had never heard of a courgette when she was growing up but they are a little bit out of fashion these days – and I must admit I can’t really get excited about the tough skin and mushy interior of what happens to mine when they get too big.

However – I don’t mind so much the ones that have got too big to be called courgettes but not so gross that the only place for them is in the chook run with the hens to peck at.   I treat those ones like I would an aubergine – and as I would struggle to produce a good aubergine in my particular climate – then an overgrown courgette makes a good substitute.  You don’t even really need to salt them -but slice them and then layer them in any Mediterranean dish as you would an aubergine.  You can fry them off in a little oil first for an extra layer of flavour  or just layer them as you would in a lasagne or moussaka.

We use our slow cooker a lot as we use solar power, so cooking slowly through the day using the sun works for us. Its always lovely to know that while you are out there working, that there is a nice substantial dinner cooking and ready when we are too tired and weary for much more. You don’t have to use the slow cooker – you can prep this in the morning and pop in the oven later on and get the same result.  You can use pasta or just have the vegetables.  This is one of those dishes that you can adapt to fit the quantities you have and whatever your preferences are. It is a great way to get more vegetable into your diet – and any fussy kids may not even notice they are eating them.

Farmhouse Courgette Lasagne Bake

Ingredients.

• 400g mince (or whatever quantity you have )
• 1 medium-large brown onion
• Garlic  2-3 cloves
• Fresh Basil if you have it
• Mixed herbs – 1 tsp mixed herbs or fresh thyme, sage, basil
• 1-2 cans tomatoes. Can use Italian flavoured ones.
• Beef stock.
• Courgettes – ideally use your big oversize courgettes that have nearly graduated to marrows
• Olive oil
• Pasta sheets (can be optional)

Cheese Sauce

• 50g butter
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 cup milk (more if needed)
• 1 cup grated cheese

Method

• Brown your onions and mince the way you usually would for a lasagne or bolognaise.
• Add crushed garlic cloves – about 2-3 to taste.
• Add the tomatoes, beef stock dissolved in cup of boiling water, herbs and dash of red wine. Season with salt and pepper to taste and sometimes I also add a tsp of sugar if I think it is needed.
• Simmer while you prepare your other ingredients.

Cheese sauce

Make this your usual way. I tend to just make a traditional cheese sauce but you can make a  bechamel sauce and then add the grated cheese

• Melt butter over heat. Grind some pepper and add a little salt.
• Remove and add the flour – mix to combine and then cook briefly while stirring.
• Add half the milk and mix to a smooth sauce.  Press out any lumps while stirring over low heat.  Add the rest of the milk and keep stirring while it heats up and gradually thickens.  Add the grated cheese and more milk if needed.  Season to taste with ground pepper.

Build your Bake

• Slice up your courgettes into about 5mm disks. You can also fry these in the olive oil for an extra flavour and texture of just leave as is if you are in a hurry.
• Layer your meat sauce and courgettes just as you would making a lasagne. Layer of courgettes on the base.  A layer of dry lasagne sheets if using, then a layer of  meat/tomato sauce.
• Keep repeating until you have used up all your ingredients, cover the whole thing with your cheese sauce and then cook.
• For the slow cooker I make it in the morning and just leave to cook all day to combine but if you were using the oven – bake as you would a lasagne. 40-60 mins in a medium oven
• Adjust your quantities to what you have available and the number of people you are feeding.  Take out the pasta if you are low carbing it and add other green vegetables if you wish.