Oven-baked courgette

Is it courgette season already? To be honest, I don’t know. Ever since you could buy almost any vegetable in the shops at practically any time of year — even fresh strawberries are available almost all the time now — I’ve completely lost track.

Of course, that doesn’t apply to everything. Take those strawberries: everyone knows the best ones are Polish, available fresh practically only from mid-May to the end of June. Although even then, their flavour and smell depend largely on whether there’s the right balance between sunny days and rain.

But what about kohlrabi, for example? When I was a child, I associated it exclusively with my grandparents’ garden. My grandfather, a master of urban growing, had the best sweet cherries and strawberries in his garden — that covers the fruit. The cherries, at least, until some plague of grubs came along and you could find a helping of protein in almost every fruit. Actually, I sometimes wonder whether Grandpa was giving those grubs a helping hand, because he was rather bothered by my cousins and me climbing onto the roof of his shed to reach the cherries. As we grew older, and heavier with it, the roof tiles needed replacing more and more often.

Anyway, as for that sturdy little fellow, the kohlrabi, back in those now sadly rather distant days, we only ate it at Grandpa’s. Honestly, I don’t remember being able to buy kohlrabi in a shop. Now you find it in almost every supermarket, at any time of year. Interestingly, at the time of year when I used to eat it as a child — spring (strawberries appearing in Grandpa’s garden basically meant kohlrabi appearing too) — it seems to me that it is now at its most expensive in the shops.

Can you guess why? Because in spring you can label it “new-season”. We have “new-season” cabbage (otherwise available all year), “new-season” carrots (also available all year without the adjective), and plenty of other “new-season” vegetables and fruit. So we also have “new-season” kohlrabi and “new-season” courgettes.

I have the impression that in spring, “new-season” simply means “Polish”. So I’ve no idea whether it’s courgette season already. What I am sure of, though, is that spring is the season for everything “new”. So get stuck into new-season courgettes too. After all, in spring you’re bound to feel more enthusiastic about everything. Certainly in our not particularly warm climate.

My oven-baked courgette, the one from today’s lunch, is definitely a little contribution to promoting veganism. I hope one of my loyal Facebook fans, Iza, appreciates it. Of course, we won’t go overboard with the promotion, but it is certainly a decent example of how even a vegan can get something out of life 😉 So do give it a look. Get baking and treat your taste buds.

At a glance:

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Baking time: 60 minutes (fan oven)

Baking temperature: 180 degrees Celsius (fan oven)

Serves: 2 – 3 people

Calories: good health has no calories

Ingredients for baked courgette:

• 1 large courgette (or 1.5 medium ones)
• half a fairly large kohlrabi (you can use a whole one; I ate half of mine while preparing it 😉
• 5 smallish potatoes
• half a medium onion
• dried herbes de Provence
• sweet paprika
• ground black pepper
• salt
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil

Recipe for oven-baked courgette:

I peeled and washed the potatoes, then diced them finely. I put them in an ovenproof dish (the one in the photo). I finely chopped the onion and added it to the potatoes. Next came the half kohlrabi, cut into thin strips. That went into the dish too.

I cut the washed courgette in half, then into half-round slices 1.5 cm thick (as shown in the photo). I added it to the ovenproof dish.

I sprinkled the prepared vegetables fairly generously with the seasonings: ground black pepper, salt, sweet paprika and herbes de Provence. I drizzled about 2 tablespoons of olive oil evenly over everything. I didn’t stir it.

I put the dish into the oven set to 180 degrees Celsius (fan oven). After about 30 minutes, I stirred the contents of the ovenproof dish and baked it for another half hour. After that, the dish is ready. Enjoy!