The second installment in my what on earth do I do with all this veg series is focussing on the sleek and very versatile courgette.

Wikipedia informs us that the courgette contains useful amounts of folate, potassium and vitamin A and 100 grams of the stuff also contains 19% of the recommended amount of manganese.

So…what should we cook with courgettes?

James Ramsden’s mum says: Courgette Bread

Ingredients:

• 3 beaten eggs
• 400g caster sugar
• 250ml sunflower oil
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 500g plain flour
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• A pinch each of nutmeg, allspice, and salt
• 400g courgettes, peeled and grated

Method:

Whisk the eggs, sugar, oil and vanilla thoroughly. Mix the dry ingredients and tip in the wet, stirring to form a smooth batter. It will seem quite stiff but the courgettes loosen it up. Now fold in the grated courgettes and tip into 2 greased loaf tins. Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for an hour and a quarter. Leave to cool for 10 minutes before turning onto a cooling rack. Makes two loaves.

Jamie says: Beautiful Courgette Carbonara

Ingredients:

• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 medium green and yellow courgettes
• 500g penne
• 4 large free-range or organic egg yolks
• 100ml double cream
• 2 good handfuls of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• olive oil
• 12 thick slices of pancetta or smoked streaky bacon, cut into chunky lardoons
• a small bunch of fresh thyme, leaves picked and chopped, flowers reserved (if you can get hold of flowering thyme)
• optional: a few courgette flowers

Method:

Carbonara is a classic pasta sauce made with cream, bacon and Parmesan and is absolutely delicious. Try to buy the best ingredients you can, as that’s what really helps to make this dish amazing. I’m using a flowering variegated variety of thyme but normal thyme is fine to use. When it comes to the type of pasta, you can serve carbonara with spaghetti or linguine, but I’ve been told by Italian mammas (who I don’t argue with!) that penne is the original, so that’s what I’m using in this recipe. Before you start cooking, it’s important to get yourself a very large pan, or use a high-sided roasting tray so you can give the pasta a good toss.

Put a large pan of salted water on to boil. Halve and then quarter any larger courgettes lengthways. Cut out and discard any fluffy middle bits, and slice the courgettes at an angle into pieces roughly the same size and shape as the penne. Smaller courgettes can simply be sliced finely. Your water will now be boiling, so add the penne to the pan and cook according to the packet instructions.

To make your creamy carbonara sauce, put the egg yolks into a bowl, add the cream and half the Parmesan, and mix together with a fork. Season lightly and put to one side.

Heat a very large frying pan (a 35cm one is a good start – every house should have one!), add a good splash of olive oil and fry the pancetta or bacon until dark brown and crisp. Add the courgette slices and 2 big pinches of black pepper, not just to season but to give it a bit of a kick. Sprinkle in the thyme leaves, give everything a stir, so the courgettes become coated with all the lovely bacon-flavoured oil, and fry until they start to turn lightly golden and have softened slightly.

It’s very important to get this next bit right or your carbonara could end up ruined. You need to work quickly. When the pasta is cooked, drain it, reserving a little of the cooking water. Immediately, toss the pasta in the pan with the courgettes, bacon and lovely flavours, then remove from the heat and add a ladleful of the reserved cooking water and your creamy sauce. Stir together quickly. (No more cooking now, otherwise you’ll scramble the eggs.)

Get everyone around the table, ready to eat straight away. While you’re tossing the pasta and sauce, sprinkle in the rest of the Parmesan and a little more of the cooking water if needed, to give you a silky and shiny sauce. Taste quickly for seasoning. If you’ve managed to get any courgette flowers, tear them over the top, then serve and eat immediately, as the sauce can become thick and stodgy if left too long.

BBC GoodFood says: Baked Parmesan Courgettes

Ingredients:

• 8 small courgettes , halved lengthways
• 4 plum tomatoes , chopped
• 2 garlic cloves , crushed
• 1 chilli , deseeded and finely chopped
• 1 tsp finely chopped rosemary
• olive oil
• 4 tbsp breadcrumbs mixed with 6 tbsp grated Parmesan (or vegetarian alternative)

Method:

Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Scoop the seeds from the middle of each courgette half with a teaspoon so that you have 16 ‘boats’. Put in one large or two smaller ovenproof dishes and season. Mix together the tomatoes, garlic, chilli and rosemary with a slug of olive oil and season.

Pile the mixture into the courgettes then cover the dishes with foil. Bake for 30 minutes or until tender, then remove the foil and scatter the breadcrumb mix over. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for another 20 minutes until golden and crisp.

Method: