Why I Love Zucchini

I love zucchini – it is one of my favorite vegetables. It is sweet, easy and quick to cook.

When I was very ill I could only eat 12 foods. Zucchini was one of those 12 foods. One benefit of zucchini is that is is highly digestible. At the time, I had very poor digestion and I had to prepare it a special way. I ate this daily for over a year. You can read this method in the last recipe at the bottom of this article. You can also read more about my health challenges at Diana’s Story.

Now that I have my digestion back I can prepare them normally. I still consider them one of my personal powerfoods. Many vegetarians rely on this bounteous growing plant.

Zucchini Facts and Nutrition Benefits:

Zucchini origins have been traced back to Mexico, from 7,000 to 5,500 BC! They were part of the ancient diet of maize, beans, and squashes.
Zucchini contains folate, potassium, vitamin A, and vitamin C.
The darker the squash, the more nutrients it has.
Dark green zucchini have beta carotene. All types provide minerals.
The high water content (95 percent) of zucchinis makes them low in calories. There are only 13 calories in a half-cup of raw zucchini.
Of those few calories, there are very few simple sugars and no health destroying white sugars.
Zucchini are rich in antioxidants – particularly helpful in protection of the eye, including protection against age-related macular degeneration and cataracts.
Definitely wash your zucchini but don’t peel because most of the nutrients are in the skin.

Next: zucchini recipes

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Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Angela N.

1:30PM PDT on Apr 7, 2012

thanks :)

send a green star

LMj S.

9:05PM PST on Feb 3, 2012

excited to try, thank you!

Ree O.

10:49AM PDT on Oct 15, 2011

Thanks for the info and recipes! They sound great! :)

Joanna C.

5:29AM PDT on Oct 15, 2011

We eat a lot of courgettes in this household as they are readily avaiable and so versitile. They bulk out dishes (curries, soups, pies, and pasta dishes) and have a subtle flavour when fried with a bit of grated parmasan scattered on top. Simple, full of nutrients and easily tasty! Yum!

Elisabeth T.

5:44PM PDT on Oct 14, 2011

Love zucchini, thanks for the great recipes!

Grainne O.

3:15PM PDT on Oct 14, 2011

I'm not a big courgette fan, but I like to throw them into dishes where their flavour gets masked so I still get the benefits.

May H.

2:50PM PDT on Oct 14, 2011

never tried it, might do though

Chris R.

Thanks Diana!~

Erika M.