Two ideas for too much squash

Bright yellow squash is hard to resist at the farmers market, but I find when I get it home the depth of my squash repertoire is shallow indeed. Protests from my family recently made me halt my fallback: sautéed with thin slices of yellow onion. What next, then? I wasn’t in the mood for squash soup, and a casserole, while retro and fun, sounded awful in this heat. The basket of squash was finally put to work in two contrasting ways, and the results were definitely worth repeating.

Panko-crusted yellow squash

Fill the bottom of a medium skillet with vegetable or olive oil and heat to medium. As its heating, combine one cup Panko breadcrumbs, half cup corn meal, and 1 teaspoon salt and spread on a plate. Combine a cup of milk and a beaten egg in a bowl. Slice squash into discs, soak in wet batter, then dredge in dry batter, careful to coat evenly. Fry until slightly brown on each side, turning once.

Tangy Squash Pickles

(Modified from Nancie McDermott’s Tangy Cucumber Pickles in her Quick & Easy Thai)

Half cup white vinegar

Half cup water

Half cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

6 small yellow squash

In a medium saucepan, combine the vinegar, water, sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the sugar and salt dissolve, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and let the dressing cool to room temperature.

Slice squash into quarter-inch thick disks and place in a plastic container or bowl. Cover with dressing and refrigerate overnight. The result is tangy and crunchy — a terrific accompaniment to grilled meats.