Zucchini

Zucchini (/zuːˈkiːniː/) or courgette (/kʊərˈʒɛt/, British English) is a summer squash which can reach nearly a meter in length, but which is usually harvested at half that size or less. In England, a fully grown zucchini is referred to as a marrow.

Along with certain other squashes and pumpkins, it belongs to the species Cucurbita pepo. Zucchini can be dark or light green. A related hybrid, the golden zucchini, is a deep yellow or orange color.

In a culinary context, zucchini is treated as a vegetable; it is usually cooked and presented as a savory dish or accompaniment. Botanically, zucchinis are fruits, a type of botanical berry, being the swollen ovary of the zucchini flower.

Zucchini, like all squash, has its ancestry in the Americas. However, the varieties of squash typically called "zucchini" were developed in Italy, many generations after their introduction from the Americas.

Name

In North America, Australia and Germany, the plant is commonly called a zucchini (ⁱ/zuːˈkiːni/; plural: zucchini or zucchinis), from Italian: zucchina[dzukˈkiːna], plural: zucchine. In Scandinavia, however, the name squash is more commonly used than zucchini.

Zucchini (novel)

Zucchini is a 1982 children's novel by Barbara Dana and illustrated by Eileen Christelow. It was followed by a sequel, Zucchini Out West.

Plot Summary

The story concerns a young New York boy, Billy, and his pet ferret, Zucchini. The book contains a number of incorrect basic facts about ferrets, such as claiming that they are herbivorous rodents.

Reception

Kirkus Reviews says "Dana tells the story of Zucchini, ... with low-keyed empathy and with an ear for the inflections of colloquial speech ... that keeps you smiling."

Awards

The book won the 1986 Maud Hart Lovelace Award and the 1986–1987 Land of Enchantment Children's Book Award.

Publishing history

Adaptions

It was adapted into an episode of CBS Storybreak in 1985.

References

Zucchini (disambiguation)

Zucchini is a type of squash. It may also refer to:

Art, entertainment, and media

Food

Other uses

See also