5% off + FREE Item for Life when you Subscribe & Save!
Weekly home delivery! 📦 See what's on sale!
Join us for the LAST Burger Night 🍔💚 of 2024: Sat, Oct 19th 12-8p, Karoake + 1/2 off taps!

3 recipes to help you survive the zucchini-apocalypse!

written by

Megan Kluge

posted on

November 12, 2021

3 recipes to help you survive the zucchini-apocalypse!



Spaghetti Sauce

Ingredients

  • 1 lb Together Farm’s ground beef, pork or lamb (or a blend!)
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 1, 14 oz can diced tomatoes
  • 1 small can tomato paste
  • 3 cloves of garlic, smashed (or more!)
  • 2 Tbsp coconut sugar, raw honey or maple syrup
  • Italian seasoning
  • 1 tsp sea salt (more to taste)
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper (more to taste)
  • 1 medium zucchini, shredded (You could just as easily add shredded carrots, mushrooms, etc.)
  • 2 Tbsp TF lard for frying


Instructions

  1. Heat a good lug of olive oil over medium high heat. Add chopped onion and cook until tender. Add meat and cook through. Add salt and pepper, and a good sprinkle of Italian seasoning. Drain fat and throw into slow cooker.
  2. Next, add all tomatoes, garlic, and sweetener to the crock pot. Add more Italian seasoning and salt and pepper. Stir to combine and let cook on low for about an hour.
  3. Meanwhile, shred or grate zucchini. Add to slow cooker. Let it cook on low for another 3-4 hours. Be sure to stir it every hour or so, so the sides don’t burn.
  4. Cook your pasta and top with this warm, yummy, healthy sauce!



Zucchini “Lasagna” Recipe


Ingredients

  • 1 lb Together Farm’s ground beef, pork or lamb (or a blend!)
  • 4 small zucchinis, ends cut off (you can sub two large zucchini)
  • 1/2 cup of your favorite pasta sauce (see above)
  • 8 oz mozzarella cheese, freshly shredded (about 2 cups), divided
  • 15 oz container of ricotta cheese or better yet sub with cottage cheese!
  • 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 Tbsp dried parsley flakes
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper


Materials

  • 1 gallon-sized plastic freezer bag
  • 1 quart-sized plastic freezer bag


To Freeze and Cook Later

1. Add half of mozzarella cheese to quart-sized bag, seal, and set aside.

2. Label your gallon-sized plastic freezer bag with the name of the recipe, cooking instructions, and “use-by” date (which will be three months from the prep date). 

3. In a large bowl, combine remaining half of mozzarella cheese and all of ricotta or cottage cheese, parmesan, eggs, parsley flakes, salt, and pepper.

4. Add ingredients to gallon-sized freezer bag in this order: a. sliced zucchini b. cheese mixture c. pasta sauce and meat. 

5. Remove as much air as possible and seal. Double bag the gallon bag.

6. Place the small bag of mozzarella between the two gallon bags and freeze for up to three months (though we have used older ones just fine).


To Cook

1. Thaw both bags overnight in the refrigerator. 

2. Dump gallon-sized bag into slow cooker and add lid. Leave baggie with cheese in refrigerator. 

3. Cook 6-8 hours in slow cooker on “low” setting. 

4. Add shredded cheese and cook additional 15 minutes or until melted. 

Serve with a big piece of crusty bread.



Spicy Sausage & Veggie Soup


Ingredients

  • 1lb Together Farm’s spicy Italian sausage or chorizo
  • 8 medium-sized carrots (about one pound), peeled (if not organic) and sliced
  • 2 medium-sized tomatoes, diced (You can sub a 14.5oz can of petite diced tomatoes, if you want)
  • 1 medium-sized zucchini, ends cut off and chopped (about one cup)
  • 1 medium-sized yellow squash, ends cut off and chopped (about one cup)
  • 1 medium-sized yellow onion, diced (about one cup)
  • 1, 15oz can of cannellini beans (white kidney beans), rinsed and drained
  • 3 cups TF pork or chicken broth (not needed until day of cooking)
  • 1, 24oz jar of your favorite pasta sauce (see above!)


Prep

1. Label freezer bag.

2. To your freezer bag, add pasta sauce, cannellini beans, carrots, tomatoes, zucchini, yellow squash, onion, and ground sausage. (Add the ground sausage to the bag last, so it’s the first ingredient poured into your slow cooker.)

3. Remove as much air from the freezer bag as possible, seal, and lay flat in your freezer.


Cook

The night before cooking, move frozen bag to your refrigerator to thaw.

2. The morning of cooking, pour contents of freezer bag into your slow cooker, add broth if it wasn’t already added to the bag, and cook on “low” setting for 8 hours, or until carrots are soft.

3. Break apart sausage and serve.


Eat plain or serve with rolls or crusty bread.

More from the blog

Last Official Burger Night Weekend

Good morning from Together Farms!Well, the end is here. Seems a bit surreal this year.Perhaps because it's basically still summer-like outside? Maybe it's because it's finally stopped raining (although we have now swung a little too far in the other direction 🙄)? Perhaps because we had such a fun team this year that we do not want the end to come? They got you. Maybe we just don't want to stop seeing your smiling faces? Maybe it's because we have no more trees left to fall on anything? 😂Hard to say for sure. All I know is that it's time and we are going to eek out every last bit of the 2024 season that we can!! As we have done every year, this week's BOTW is Dealer's Choice.  Burger of the Week: Dealer's Choice You've trusted the kitchen this long. (I mean, look at those faces.....how could you not trust them??)You will have the option to say spicy or not spicy. You can tell us if there are things you loathe but otherwise, you have to sit back and wait for the results.  A surprise burger! 🥳 Farm Store Sales 🍔 Don't worry!! We are NOT going to leave you hanging all winter! In the farm store everything you need for an EPIC Burger Night at HOME is on sale!!  Ground beefBaconCheeseBacon-onion jamBreadGluten-free bunsSaltPepperButter The only real question is what kind of burgers are YOU going to make???  Thursday, October 3 Open 4pm - 8:30ish pmDealer's Choice BOTW is 20% off!! Friday, October 4 LIVE MUSIC with Ethan Todd, 5-8pmAn acoustic mix of country, country rock, and heartland rock. Ethan is a 22-year-old singer/songwriter proudly from MN. His music incorporates artists from styles ranging from country, bluegrass, blues, rock, and folk. Some of the covers you could expect to hear….Tyler ChildersRandy TravisMerle HaggardBuck OwensEaglesBuddy HollyJohnny CashTom PettyJohn MellencampBruce SpringsteenJohn PrineJim CroceTurnpike TroubadoursHank Williams/Hank Jr. etc, etc, etc! Live music has been added to Friday night!! Weather is looking perfect!  Saturday, October 5 LIVE MUSIC from Jeff White, 5-8pm Jeff began honing his songwriting skills working the red-eye shift as a taxi driver. Railroad conductors, heartbroken men & women after bar close and wild out-of-towners were all frequent riders who freely opened up about their personal lives. Their late night conversations were all inspirations to the genesis of his upcoming career as a songwriter and entertainer.Jeff has toured the lower 48 from coast to coast as well as England, Scotland and Wales, singing about the realities, illusions and the wide emotional spirit of love and life in America. Much in the vein of Johnny Cash, Jeff writes and sings his own songs but also performs unique interpretations of other songs he admires. He has 6 albums under his belt and one is with Charlie Parr & international folk music legend, Greg Brown. Americana/Alt-country from the hills of Western Wisconsin. Blending warm tones, reverbs, delays & vibrato with outlaw grit, Jeff White sings of love, loss & lust with an Americana vibe.We are so excited to have Jeff back on our stage!! Sunday, October 6 Family Day! Buy one get one FREE kids meals all day! UPDATES & REMINDERS Sunday, October 6th is our official last Burger Night of 2024. We may do pop-ups if the unpredictable weather cooperates but since we have no idea what tomorrow might bring, much less 2025, we'd recommend that you plan accordingly!! Bring a flannel! It's getting chillier now and even if it's nice while the sun is out, once it goes behind our hills it cools down fast.If you are coming after 8pm, call or text to make sure the kitchen will be ready for you!The bar and fire keep going until everyone's had enough though. So no hurry there. :)The farm store is open all winter! We just don't know our hours yet, we'll announce them as soon as we have a solid plan.Thanks for doing life with us! Hope to see you on the farm for some fall fun!!  Your farmer & friend,  Stephanie Schneider Burger Night is open, rain or shineThursday & Friday 4pm-8:30ish pmSaturday noon-8:30ish pmSunday noon-7pmMonday & Tuesday farm store only open: 10-6pm

BN 21: Spotted Cow BOTW + Free beer x2 🍺🍺 MadLee live music Sat 🤩

Hello from TF! Feels like we just talked and yet, there's more I need to tell you. Never a dull moment here....still waiting on that Norden Road reality show.Although I will say, we are getting one tiny step closer with all the reels and photos we've been sharing! If you haven't stalked our facebook, instagram or tiktok for a little while, go check 'em out!  Burger of the Week: The Spotted Cow 🐄 Spotted Cow beer cheese sauceOnion tanglersApplewood smoked bacon100% grassfed beef pattytoasted pretzel (or brioche) bun Another fan favorite BOTW! Also we forgot to advertise beer mugs until a few weeks ago so we have a LOT of frozen mugs for you! Goes [chefs kiss] with this BOTW. 😘 Plus you get FREE BEER every time! Farm Store Sales 🍺🧀 All our beer & cheese products (so a lot!) on sale in the farm store and online this week!!All cheese is Buy 3, Get 1 FREE!(or for those of you with a cheese drawer instead of a veggie drawer, Buy 6, get 2 Free!) Thursday, September 19 We are so thankful for this rain! It's been awhile & our sandy soils were very dry so hopefully we get some late fall grass growth and can keep the cows off hay for as long as possible!  However! It does suck when it rains on a Burger Night day and it says it might rain tonight (from 6-8. seriously?). But you should know by now that: Wisconsin weather is the most unpredictable thing in the world (right next to the timing of my emails 😄)andyour skin is 100% waterproofandno matter the weather on Thursdays it's always worth it to save 20% on the Spotted Cow Burger of the Week!! 😋 Friday, September 20 Reminder that after Labor Day Friday live music is not scheduled until we can know if the weather is going to be perfect. So, no live music because rain is kinda predicted....looks iffy. Let's just hang out!!Enjoy some ASMR in-person. Watch the birds. (download the Merlin app!)Slow down and really notice the flowers and bees and water lilies and dragonflies and butterflies. Maybe sample each beer...... 🍻 Currently on tap: Spotted Cow (of course)Cowbell Cream Ale (Bloomer Brewing)Blackberry and once that's gone, Cranberry Lemonade Beer (Sand Creek)Downtown Brown (Pearl Street)Fluffhead (Zymurgy)Gunpowder (The Brewing Projekt)Honeycrisp Hard Cider (Maiden Rock Cidery)Minnesconsin (Hop & Barrel)Mudpuppy Porter (Central Waters)Oktoberfest (Lazy Monk)Warped Speed (Lake Louie)Bonus: if you get rain in your beer, you just got MORE FREE BEER!!! Saturday, September 21 LIVE MUSIC from MadLee Band, 5-8pm Voted #2 Best New Band in the Chippewa Valley! A new duo comprised of Maddex Larson & Paige Lee (top 10 finalist for best female vocalist in Wisconsin!) is hitting the TF stage for the first time ever. They play a variety of music, singing old and new favorites you can’t help but sing along to. We've been waiting for these two for awhile now! The accolades from all the locals are crazy, people LOVE them! 🤩 Can't wait to host them on the TF band stage! Come support your local musicians! Same weather comments as the ones above for tonight....show will go on, rain or shine! Sunday, September 22 Family Day! Buy one get one FREE kids meals all day!  UPDATES & REMINDERS Family Fun Day is Sat, Sept 28th. Sunday, October 6th is our official last Burger Night of 2024. We may do pop-ups if the unpredictable weather cooperates and we have no idea what 2025 might bring so plan accordingly!! Closing Earlier??The "ish"s are back on Friday and Saturday night closing times since it gets dark early and can get very cold early. We may close at 8:30 if the weather and darkness lead us to believe no one else is coming, so if you are coming after 8pm, call or text to make sure the kitchen will be ready for you!The bar and fire keep going until everyone's had enough though. So no hurry there. Just one more. :) Hope to see you on the farm soon!  Steph & the TF family 

with customization by Grapevine Local Food Marketing