Grilled Zucchini Stacks

The fresh zucchini has started to flood into the market. It won't be long before farmers can't give it away! When it gets to that I can always be counted upon to take one (or a basket) since there are few vegetables that take to grilling as well as zucchini IMHO.

The slowtravel cooks have started a new weekly cook-a-thon. no, we won't eb working through an entire cookbook for the next year and a half. This one is relatively easy - one of the group selects an ingredient and then the rest of the group needs to make a recipe utilizing that ingredient. The idea is that these are dishes that are grilled or you could serve at a BBQ.

Moderator Panda selected zucchini for this week's ingredient and in the end I decided to invent a recipe that could be used as a side dish. This is a perfect recipe for the summer - the basil infused oil can be made in the morning before the kitchen gets too hot to turn on the stove. Not long before you're ready to eat the zucchini gets grilled, the stacks assembled, and your happy guests will tuck into a perfect summer treat full of fresh flavours!

Grilled Zucchini Stacks

1 1/2 cups lightly packed fresh basil leaves
1 cup olive or vegetable oil (see notes)
2 zucchini, sliced about 1 cm thick
sliced bocconcini cheese, sliced
1 tomato, sliced
freshly grated pepper
sea salt

To make the basil oil:

Rinse and drain basil leaves. Pat leaves dry with a towel. In a blender or food processor, combine basil leaves and olive or vegetable oil (see notes). Whirl just until leaves are finely chopped (do not purée).

Pour mixture into a 1- to 1 1/2-quart pan over medium heat. Stir occasionally until oil bubbles around pan sides and reaches 165° on a thermometer, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand until cool, about 1 hour.

Line a fine wire strainer with two layers of cheesecloth and set over a small bowl. Pour oil mixture into strainer. After oil passes through, gently press basil to release remaining oil. Discard basil. Serve oil or cover airtight and store in the refrigerator up to 3 months. The olive oil may solidify slightly when chilled, but it will quickly liquefy when it comes back to room temperature.

Note: Drizzle this aromatic oil over sliced tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese, green beans, potatoes, bread, green salads, and grilled or poached chicken or fish. Choose a mild-flavored oil so it doesn't overwhelm the basil; the oil should take on the flavor and fragrance of the basil you use. For more intense flavor, after step 2, cover and chill oil up to 1 day. Strain (if solidified, let come to room temperature first).

About 15 minutes before you're ready to eat:

Heat grill to high.

Slice the zucchini crosswise. Brush each piece with some of the basil oil. Grill each side until there are grill marks. Note: don't grill it too much or it will become mushy.

Prepare the stacks: layer a slice of grilled zucchini with a piece of bocconcini on top. Place a slice of tomato on top of the cheese. Place a second slice of cheese on top of the tomato. Top with a second piece of grilled zucchini. Sprinkle with sea salt and freshly grated pepper. Drizzle with more basil oil.

Comments

[Kayte]

Great recipe! We can certainly make good use of all of this! Looking forward to the new cooking theme you are all doing, loved the Hazan one so much! Best part of that deal is that the book has no photos, so was always great to go to your site and see what it was supposed to look like when I finished with it! Very nice....thanks one and all.

[Karen (Back Road Journal)]

What a pretty presentation for grilled vegetables. Wish I had seen this yesterday as I grilled yellow squash and zucchini. Oh well, next time for sure.

[JDeQ]

Thanks - it is amazing what one can do when one can't find something in the gazillion cookbooks or online that sounds interesting . . .