If anyone tries to tell you that zucchini aka courgettes are a bland vegetable, serve them this dish, zucchine e patate al forno or Oven Roasted Zucchini and Potatoes. You’ll change their mind at their first bite.
The recipe is straightforward. Just lay out alternating layers of pre-seasoned sliced zucchini and potatoes in a baking dish, top them with seasoned breadcrumbs and a good drizzle of olive oil. Then it’s into the oven for about 45 minutes until the veg are cooked through and the topping has turned a beautiful golden brown.
The recipe is also versatile. You can switch things up by varying the seasonings to your liking. Add cheese or ham, or both, for a more substantial dish fit for an antipasto or main course.
You can scarcely get any simpler than this, folks. But the result is incredibly tasty. The zucchini infuse the potatoes with their lovely mild, sweet flavor, enhanced by the fruity olive oil and just the slightest hint of garlic. And the breadcrumb topping adds more savor and an almost addictive crunch to the melt in your mouth creaminess of the vegetables.
Now I realize this sounds like an over the top description for what is, at the end of the day, just a simple vegetable gratin. But, trust me, just give zucchine e patate al forno a try. You can thank me for it later…
Ingredients
Serves 4-6 as a side dish
- 2-3 largish sized zucchini, about 250g (1/2 lb), thinly sliced
- 3-4 smallish new potatoes, about 300g (10-1/2 oz), peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 clove garlic, split in half
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
For the topping:
- 2 heaping Tbs breadcrumbs
- A spring or two of fresh parsley, marjoram or oregano, minced
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced (optional)
- grated parmigiano-reggiano or pecorino romano, to taste (optional)
Directions
Prep the ingredients
Place the zucchini slices in a mixing bowl and toss with a drizzle of olive and season generously with salt and pepper.
Do the same with the potato slices, in a separate bowl
In a third bowl, mix the breadcrumbs with the minced herb, salt, pepper and, if using the minced garlic and/or a spoonful or two of grated cheese. Drizzle with enough olive oil to moisten the mixture and mix again.
Assemble the dish
Rub the bottom of a large baking dish with a clove of garlic and discard. Then brush on a little olive oil to cover the entire bottom of the dish.
Lay down alternating, overlapping slices of zucchini and potato in a snug single layer.
Sprinkle the seasoned breadcrumbs over the zucchini and potato slices. Drizzle everything with more olive oil.
Bake and serve
Bake in a moderate (190C/375F) oven for 40-45 minutes, or until the potato is cooked through. The topping should be golden brown. If it isn’t, run under a moderate broiler for a few minutes more.
Let rest for a few minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes on zucchine e patate al forno
Try to find zucchini and potatoes that are about the same size around. That means zucchini that are bit bigger than average, as well as smallish (but not baby) sized potatoes. Then slice them both equally thin. You should wind up with the same number of slices of each vegetable of roughly the same width and thickness.
Any kind of potato will work in a pinch, but I much prefer to use yellow-fleshed new potatoes for this dish for their creamy texture and rich flavor. New potatoes with their thin skins can be peeled or not, as you prefer. I generally prefer to peel mine. No need to throw the peels out, by the way. Deep fried and lightly salted, they’re absolutely addictive.
The baking dish can be any shape or material, though I particularly like a large round ceramic baking dish as pictured here. That allows you to arrange your slices in lovely concentric circles. A dish about 30cm (≈12in) in diameter works well with this amount of vegetable. It’s best to use a dish with low sides to allow the hot air to circulate for faster, more even cooking and better browning.
Cooking tips and time savers
To ensure the zucchini and potatoes cook evenly, do try to limit yourself to a single albeit overlapping layer of ingredients. I like to lay out my slices so they overlap about halfway, but you can overlap them more or less so all your ingredients fit in the baking dish. Bear in mind that the vegetables will shink as they bake, so make sure the circles are packed together quite snuggly. If you really want or need multiple layers of ingredients, then I’d parboil the potatoes before baking (see below) and you’ll probably need more like 60 minutes baking.
If you want to save some time, you can skip the initial seasoning of the zucchini and potatoes and just lay the raw slices into your baking dish. Then be extra generous seasoning your breadcrumbs and finally, drizzle everything with a good glug of olive oil before placing the dish in the oven. It’ll be perfectly fine, though I think the tiny bit of extra time and effort it take to preseason the veg does pay off. It’s paying attention to little details like this that turns a good cooking into a really great cook.
And if you’re really pressed for time and don’t need or want to impress anyone, you can just mix and season the zucchini and potato slices together and pour them willy-nilly in the baking dish. Just make sure that they’re spread out thinly so they cook evenly. The dish won’t be very pretty, of course, but it’ll still be delicious.
Variations
As mentioned at the top, if you want to turn zucchine e patate al forno into a more substantial dish, fit for antipasto or even a main course, you can alternate the zucchini and potato with slices of mozzarella or scamorza, or slices of cooked ham. Or both if you really want to go to town.
You can also skip the breadcrumbs if you like or top with grated cheese only.
There are recipes for zucchine e patate al forno where you precook the potatoes and/or the zucchini before they are baked together into the oven. The potato slices are parboiled, while the zucchini is lightly sautéed. Sounds like too much trouble, if you ask me, especialy for the zucchini.
Parboiling the potatoes does make some sense, since the naturally take longer to cook than the zucchini. But if your slices are thin enough and your ingredients are well spread out, this shouldn’t be a problem. That said, if you want to “deep dish” version of this dish, do parboil the potatoes at least.
Making zucchine e patate al forno ahead
The dish is at its best, in my opinion, slightly warm but it’s also actually quite nice at room temp. I wouldn’t make it too far ahead, however. A hour or two is fine.
Otherwise, you could also assemble the dish some time ahead, then bake and serve it when you’re ready to eat. You can also reheat it, but honestly, while it’s perfect edible, the reheated dish loses much of its charm.
If you find you have a few stray leftover raw potato or zucchini slices, they’re perfectly delicious in padella, sautéed in garlic and olive oil. If you have both, sauté the potatoes first, until they are almost tender, then add the zucchini.
Zucchine e patate al forno (Oven Roasted Zucchini and Potatoes)
Ingredients
- 2-3 largish sized zucchini about 250g (1/2 lb), thinly sliced
- 3-4 smallish new potatoes about 300g (10-1/2 oz), peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 clove garlic split in half
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
For the topping:
- 2 heaping Tbs breadcrumbs
- A spring or two of fresh parsley marjoram or oregano, minced
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1 clove garlic finely minced (optional)
- grated parmigiano-reggiano or pecorino romano to taste (optional)
Instructions
Prep the ingredients
- Place the zucchini slices in a mixing bowl and toss with a drizzle of olive and season generously with salt and pepper.
- Do the same with the potato slices, in a separate bowl
- In a third bowl, mix the breadcrumbs with the minced herb, salt, pepper and, if using the minced garlic and/or a spoonful or two of grated cheese. Drizzle with enough olive oil to moisten the mixture and mix again.
Assemble the dish
- Rub the bottom of a large baking dish with a clove of garlic and discard. Then brush on a little olive oil to cover the entire bottom of the dish.
- Lay down alternating, overlapping slices of zucchini and potato in a snug single layer.
- Sprinkle the seasoned breadcrumbs over the zucchini and potato slices. Drizzle everything with more olive oil.
Bake and serve
- Bake in a moderate (190C/375F) oven for 40-45 minutes, or until the potato is cooked through. The topping should be golden brown. If it isn’t, run under a moderate broiler for a few minutes more.
- Let rest for a few minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.
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Nonna Chiarina made something like this, but with tomatoes instead of potatoes. I know I would love this potato version as well! How could you not?
Indeed!
It took no browbeating or begging to get DSA to make this dish; he made two pie-plates of this dish with alacrity, one with ham, one without, both with sweet marjoram from the garden, and both equally delicious. They served for dinner one evening and a couple of lunches, as it reheats successfully. So-ooo delicious. And, it is zucchine season here! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
That’s wonderful, Mark. Glad you guys enjoyed both versions!
Came out exactly as you wrote. I wondered what “thin” meant for slices, but used my judgment (and a good knife). Worried about too much salt, but turned out perfectly. Ate with slightly toasted focaccia from a marvelous NYC bakery. I like to imagine my long-gone grandfather from the slopes of Bronte would have enjoyed it.
Awesome, Jeff! And I’m sure he would have enjoyed this.
I’m with you, this dish is a total game changer for zucchini doubters! So simple, but the flavours come together beautifully. That crispy topping with the creamy veg? Absolutely divine.
Thanks so much, Raymund!
Frank, once again, this is proof, that with a a few simple quality ingredients a dish is elevated to perfection. This is a great summer dish.Its on my list!
So true, Velva. Hope you do give it a try, it’s a winner.
Buonissimo. I learnt something similar decades ago from a mum of a friend. The only difference is that she would use also sliced tomatoes, and think that is a nice touch, because they add juiciness and a sharp note. The only problem I have with his dish if that it does need a large oven try to make 3-4 decent portions (and plenty of oil). Now that I think of it, I do have all the ingredients for tonite…
Sounds lovely, too, with tomato slices. I’ll give that a try next time.
Made it tonight Frank. Herbs thyme, rosemary and parsley. Had it with what we call”Slurry”, stew of celery, peppers, carrot, tomato, pumpkin and kidney beans, cumin, parprika made on chicken stock with a few bacon bones. The slightly crispy potato/zucchini a perfect foil. Simply delicious, Winter here so perfect fare.
That’s great to hear, John! Glad you enjoyed it.
Oooo I love the combination of zucchini and potatoes, so this dish is right up my alley. I agree that sometimes zucchini can be a bit bland, but it’s not the case in this recipe! Another one to try 🙂
Defintely worth a try, Ben! If you do, let me know if you like it.
Zucchini do tend to get a bad rap…probably because of the zucchini that end up larger than your forearm and tasting entirely of water! But this recipe does sound delicious, and the browning on top looks perfect. This is a great recipe for this time of the year when zucchini starts to be more than plentiful!
You’re so right. Those enormous ones don’t really make very good eating. But the little ones.. ! Anyway, I planted zucchini this year so this will be on the menu more than once! Hope you give it a try
this sounds really really good Frank. I love the simplicity of it! I am a fan of zucchini anyway and who doesn’t love potatoes?
cheers
sherry
Indeed! Thanks for stopping by, Sherry.
Zucchini is one of my staple veggies, we love them! We’ve made your wonderful and delicious zucchini fritters and now we will make this. Zucchini isn’t slimy, just sayin’
Excellent! And yes, I agree. Never thought that about zucchini. Never even heard it, actually!
This sounds perfect for summer when au gratin potatoes are a bit heavy. I will definitely use the topping, as I think it likely adds much to the dish.
Hope you like it, Barb!
This dish just says “summer” when zucchini are abundant, and sacks appear anonymously on one’s doorstep. Yum!
Haha! You have nice neighbors.
This reads as a perfect ‘Frank’ recipe . . . few, but best available, ingredients and simple, simple, simple ! The purist in me suggests to eat this as is . . . the practical one advises to add some of the proteins mentioned and have a hugely enjoyable meal . . .
You’re right, I love to keep things simple, Eha. And the dish is delicious either way.
A simple but very tasty and comforting side!
Thanks, Angie!
I’ve always loved zucchini and that dish looks delicious! It reminds me a bit of Tiella, a rice and fish dish (closely related to paella), topped with sliced zucchini, from Apulia.
Thanks, MD. Yes, it is very much related. In fact you could call this a tiella (or a tortino) among other names.
We were just having the discussion with our son and daughter-in-law about his unwillingness to eat “slimy” zucchini. Mark chimed in that I won him over with a sautéed version where they are cut into coins, then browned in olive oil with onion. Now I can show them this recipe, which sounds perfectly perfect. I’ll be picking up zucchini and potatoes at farmers market this weekend to make this. This is one of the areas where Italian cuisine really shines — contorni that are both simple and flavorful.
I fully agree, David. Hope you like this one. In fact, I’m pretty sure you will. 🙂
Funny, never heard that zucchini were “slimy”. Bland yes, but that one is new.