The last few weekends that I’ve been to the St. Paul Farmer’s Market, the stands have been overflowing with delicious zucchini. This last weekend was no exception. I happen to find a stand selling large zucchini 3 for 75 cents, so always the deal shopper, I picked up a bunch and started thinking about how I’d use them this week. Last week I diced up a few and sauteed them with olive oil and Swedish Potato sausage. Mmm that was a good meal-ok, back to this week. At work we have a lunch club that is sort of a spin on a healthy potluck where once a week someone brings in a homemade and healthy lunch for the others. For those of you not from Minnesota, there’s something ingrained in Minnesotans-we LOVE potlucks and any excuse to have one. This week I was hosting lunch and made this as our main dish. This is a really easy dish to assemble-it’s only 10 ingredients, it feeds a good sized group and its a fantastic way to enjoy the abundance of zucchini at your local farmer’s market!

Ingredients
3 Zucchinis (Green, Yellow or both and at least 12 inches long)
32oz container of Ricotta Cheese
4 TB of Pesto
4 Eggs
28oz can of Crushed Tomatoes
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
½ tsp Garlic Salt
1 cup shredded Parmesan Reggiano
8oz package of shredded Mozzarella
½ cup fresh Basil (cut into strips)

Directions
Preheat oven to 375.

Fill a large stock pot with water and bring to a boil. Cut off ends of zucchini and slice lengthwise as thin as you can with a knife (do not peel off skin). Place zucchini in boiling water and cook until pieces are pliable, about 10 minutes. When cooked, drain in a colander and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine ricotta, pesto and eggs. Set aside.

Open can of tomatoes and in the can add the italian seasoning and garlic salt, stir and set aside.

In a 9×13 glass pan, pour ½ cup of the tomato mixture in bottom of the pan. Then layer zucchini strips lengthwise. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture on top of the zucchini. Then top with 1/3 of tomato mixture, 1/3 cup of parmesan and 1/3 of the bag of mozzarella. Repeat for 3 layers. Cover pan with tin foil.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes covered, remove foil and bake an additional 15 minutes.

Let Zuccagna cool at room temperature for 15 minutes before slicing and top with fresh basil.

Makes 12 servings