Australian Zucchini Slice
- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- ⅓cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, more for the pan
- 1large leek, white and light green parts, halved and thinly sliced into half moons (1½ cups)
- 4garlic cloves, finely grated or minced
- ⅓cup coarsely chopped green olives
- ⅓cup coarsely chopped pickled peppers (such as jalapeños and pepperoncini)
- 1¼teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal), more as needed
- 5large eggs
- 2small zucchini, about 14 ounces, grated (2½ cups)
- 1cup shredded Cheddar
- ½cup coarsely chopped cilantro, basil or dill (or a combination)
- 1cup (125 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1½teaspoons baking powder
- Flaky sea salt and chile flakes, for serving (optional)
Preparation
- Step 1
Heat the oven to 350 degrees and brush an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with olive oil. Line pan with parchment paper, leaving 2 inches overhanging on the sides of the pan.
- Step 2
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add leek, and cook until softened and golden brown, 7 to 10 minutes. Stir in garlic, olives, pickled peppers and ½ teaspoon salt, and cook until fragrant, 1 minute. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and add the remaining ⅓ cup oil; let mixture cool.
- Step 3
In a medium bowl, whisk eggs until combined. Stir eggs into leek mixture, then stir in zucchini, cheese and cilantro. Sprinkle flour, baking powder and remaining salt over the wet ingredients. Mix gently until smooth.
- Step 4
Scrape mixture into prepared baking dish. Bake until center is set and lightly golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes if using a metal pan and 40 to 50 minutes if using a glass dish. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool slightly. Cut into small squares and serve warm or at room temperature, sprinkled with flaky sea salt and chile flakes, if you like.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
As with many MC recipes this one has too much added salt. The olives and cheese contribute quite a bit on their own. When cooking it's good to remember that you can always add salt at the table but you can't "unsalt" an oversalted dish. Otherwise this is a fine recipe.
I've been making a simple, quick version of this for years. People always ask for the recipe. I hesitate to give it. The reason: Bisquick! The gasps from foodies are audible. Bisquick, eggs, milk, grated zucchini and grated cheese, amounts by eye.
Chickpea flour works perfectly as a gluten-free substitute for the flour in the recipe.
This was delicious and I would change very little. I understand using a cup of flour to absorb the moisture of the zucchini, but it's just too much and a lazy way to deal with it. Strain and press the moisture out of the zucchini and squeeze out the extra moisture, and use only a half of the flour. You will have a much happier Austrailian zucchini slice.
A substitute suggestion for the olives or pickled peppers is preserved lemon. I used this instead of olives and loved the lemony lift.
Hi Mary K Yes it definitely works well with gluten-free flour. Have used a range of gluten-free flour mixes (both commercial and homemade) in similar recipes over the years.
Capers came out nice
In short, use parmesan instead of cheddar and you could easily skip the olives and peppers. My mom made the Bisquick version when I was a kid. I think I truly like that version better, not just for nostalgia reasons. It uses parmesan instead of cheddar and has no salty olives or bacon. They're pretty close overall, and I like that this doesn't use Bisquick. Next time I'll use this as a base and leave out the olives and sub parmesan.
Made with yellow squash and capers. Great.
Remember that she calls for Kosher salt--if you use regular salt certainly use less
It should. Fritattas set no problem without any flour at all, and the words "sprinkle" and "mix gently" indicate that there is no gluten development. So the flour is just there to provide some bulk and to absorb some moisture. (I expect that in fact the starch will help hold onto moisture while it bakes and sits.) A good gluten-free flour mix should work perfectly.
That zucchini needs to be squeezed dry. I know the instructions don't call for it, but it will make a much better frittata if you do. After grating it, put it into a lint free towel and squeeze till the dripping stops.
This is wonderful base recipe that isn’t too fussy. We didn’t have all the ingredients in the original so we mixed in some Swiss chard with the leeks and used feta cheese in lieu of cheddar. Anything would work well. The 5 eggs zucchini provided enough moisture to mix the dry ingredient in. The pickled peppers and olives are genius. I will make this again and again with what ever is in season.
It could be that people find MC recipes too salty because she is using diamond crystal salt. It is less dense so you need more to be as salty as a smaller amount of table salt or even other kosher salts. Or tastes just differ!
This sounds good except for the pickled jalapeños or pepperoncini. Any suggestion for substitute? More olives, fresh yellow peppers?
Very nice. Did it again. Use 3 tablespoons flour only. As good as 6 months ago. Served with a simple green salad.
Modified for tradition & simplicity: 1/2 onion, diced 1 or 2 garlic cloves, minced 4 oz ham, sausage or bacon, diced Oil Saute together or separately, and cool 5 eggs 1 cup AP flour 1.5t baking powder 1/2t table salt Black pepper 2T EEVO Whisk together in a large bowl 2 small zucchini, ~ 14oz, grated (2½ cups). Squeeze if moist. 1 carrot, grated 1 c shredded sharp Cheddar ½ c chopped parsley Fold gently into egg mixture Can top with grated parmesan. Bake per the original recipe.
Very, very nice. Followed the recipe closely except for the flour quantity. Added 3 tbsp instead of 1 cup. It is too much flour. Baked it for 30-35 minutes. Served with greens. Delicious, a sure winner.
The full measure of flour gives the characteristic texture of a slice. This dish is a different animal than a quiche or frittata.
This was DELICIOUS. Used onion instead of leek, and a tsp of salt based on reviews. Otherwise as advised, and it was perfect right out of the oven - can’t wait to eat it again later as folks seem to think it only improves with cooling!
The ratios here are spot on. Well done. I’m saying this as an Australian who’s played with a lot of zucc slice recipes. The thing some of the commenters are missing is that this is not a frittata. We know frittatas, my US friends, and a zucchini slice is not that. The flour (plus baking powder!) is not only for absorbing liquid, it gives it a consistency that survives hot school days in lunch boxes inside backpacks - we don’t have a dine-in canteen lunch culture here.
This is delicious. For what it’s worth, I forgot to include the 1/3 cup of oil. I’m not missing it at all.
1. If using garden zucchini, it seems best to just use ~1 Tbsp oil to cook the onion mixture and not add the extra 1/3 cup oil; the zucchini has enough moisture. 2. It's possible to put the mixture into muffin cups to make egg bites; it fits perfectly into a 12 cup muffin tin; we used parchment paper liners & cooked for 28 minutes @ 350 F. 3. We added 1/4-1/2 tsp chili flakes with the dry ingredients. 4. We used King Arthur's GF 1:1 flour and Kroger vegan cheese shreds with no issues.
Made with 1:1 GF flour (King Arthur). Have used both dill and cilantro; prefer the dill. It's possible to put into 12 muffin cups (we used parchment paper liners) for egg bites; it fit perfectly. Cooked for 28 minutes at 350 F (took out twice in the middle of that to check earlier).
Also, if using garden zucchini, we've found it works best to not add any oil other than what's needed to cook the onion mixture; the zucchini has enough moisture. (So we usually only use about 1 Tbsp oil).
Yum! I made the recipe mostly as published and it turned out very well. The only change: I subbed a commercial GF flour blend. I combined the Australian slice with Lidey Heuck's chickpea salad recipe (served on mixed greens) for a refreshing summer dinner that will make great leftovers tomorrow!
Added bacon because my kids asked for it. Squeezed lots of liquid out of zucchini. Chopped up and added some fresh dill, rosemary, and parsley. Used 1/4 cup gluten free flour. Still a little goopy in middle, but delicious.
As an Australian, olives in Zucchini Slice is sacrilege! Bacon & additional chilli are non negotiables in our house.
Overall this was on the right track, but I would tweak a few things for next time: * Increase spicy things (chopped jalapenos) * Decrease added salt (as other commenters have said -- I saw this too late) * Cook directly in a greased pan or skillet rather than using wax paper. The whole bottom of my zucchini slice adhered (and ultimately was lost to) the wax paper. Maybe others can explain this? Too much zucchini?
Wax paper is not the same as parchment paper! I don't think wax paper is oven safe.
This is very good! I used King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten-free flour in place of the wheat flour. The dish rose and set perfectly and was done at 34 minutes. The flavors are wonderful; I love hot peppers in omelets, and that vibe comes through. I will experiment with cheese blends, as Pepper Jack or Parmesan could be good in it. I'm trying to decide why I didn't give it five stars. It's not perfect, but it's very good! With a salad it would be a nice dinner or brunch.
I’m Australian, and an ‘80s kid, so it’s fair to say I’ve made and eaten a few zucchini slices in my time. This is one of the best recipes I’ve used by far.
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