Patty Patty Pan Pan

“Too much character.” That’s what the lady at the farmer’s market told me. “They have too much character. People are sometimes scared to buy them because they don’t know how to cook them or what to do with something so awkwardly shaped.” What a sad truth. To me, Pattypan squash, to put it simply, is awesome!

I love this scallop of the green. It’s great for kebabing (new word of the day), grilling, sautéing, roasting, frying and coolest of all, stuffing! They’re available only in the summer unless they’re not local (I know what you’re saying, who wouldn’t buy local?), and are best when picked young at about 2-3 inches in diameter. Choose shades of green and/or yellow but try to avoid white ones—a sign of age and toughness.

Though there are many ways to prepare these bad little buttons, try sticking to these basic rules: Use dry heat and fast cooking. Sure boiling and steaming summer squashes is fine, but if you want the best of that oh-so-frightening character, try rubbing them with a drop of olive oil, seasoning them with a little salt & pepper and then grilling them over an open flame. When you think they’re done it’s probably too late, so pull them off the grill a little early so you don’t overcook. Talk about yum! Summer screams simplicity; that’s why these are so great.

More tips: To kebab, cut up your favorite meats and/or veggies into 1 inch cubes. Marinate the meats until tender (see my hors d’ oeuvres article for a good teriyaki marinade) and precook any excessively firm veggies by steaming or blanching. Choose pattypans also around 1 inch in size and place on presoaked skewers (to keep from burning) alternating with the other vegetables and meats. Grill until delicious.

Even more tips: Now skewering is fun and all, but if you really want to impress your friends with a pattypan pandemic, get lots of these little green guys, scoop out their centers with a melon baller (set aside) and oil/season the husks as described above. Then, smash the scooped out filling with some roasted garlic, a little olive oil and butter, salt & pepper and any other favorite herbs or spices of your liking. Italian herb combinations as well as cream cheese and chive mixes are quite popular. Using a muffin pan to keep them from teetering, stuff and bake the squashes until tender. Bread crumbs and cheeses, as well as lids reserved from scooping, can act as a topper or hat.

One last tip: This is one of my favorites, and like summer, it’s also simple. Heat a sauté pan to medium heat with a little olive oil and honey to taste. Add the pattypans and whole caraway seeds to your liking. Being sure not to burn the honey or the seeds, continue to cook until tender, seasoning halfway through with salt & pepper. That’s it, simple! If you want to make it a little more troublesome however, try adding 1 inch cubed parsnips and blanched carrots.

Pattypan has many names on the market. Look for aliases such as scallopini, white squash, button squash or even scalloped squash. Regardless of the name however, don’t be nervous about their overbearing character. Like many of us, they’re just misunderstood. Summer is almost over so hurry and take some home to get to know them, you may be surprised by what you learn.