When we look at zucchini prices in the winter months, we think ahead to the summer months and all the zucchini dishes we’re going to make.

This weekend, we’re serve these zucchini crisps with Prosecco, although they go with any wine, beer or cocktail and make a fine side dish or snack-in-front-of-the-TV.

They’re baked, not fried; and combine the best aspects of cheese and salty snacks in the form of a serving of green vegetables. Yes, it’s another way to trick the veg-resistant into eating more veggies!

The zucchini crisps (chips) are also easy to make. Thanks to XBar at the Hyatt Regency, Los Angeles, for the recipe.

The better the Parmesan cheese you use, the tastier the crisps. If you’re a fan of panko, Japanese bread crumbs, you can use them to amp up the dish.

RECIPE: PARMESAN ZUCCHINI CRISPS

Ingredients For 2 Servings

Preparation

1. PREHEAT oven to 450°F. Lightly coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.

2. SLICE zucchini into 1/4-inch thick rounds. Toss the zucchini with olive oil in a medium bowl.

3. COMBINE the cheese, bread crumbs, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Dip the zucchini rounds into the cheese mixture, coating each side. Place the rounds in a single layer on the baking sheet.

4. BAKE the rounds until browned, about 25 to 30 minutes. Enjoy them warm or at room temperature.

When it comes to soft serve ice cream, some fans say that the best is at Dairy Freeze in Boston. Others cite Christy’s Tasty Queen in Kansas City.

Without going to those establishments or any others, we opine that the best soft serve ice cream is at Godiva Chocolatier boutiques.

Godiva has launched a premium soft serve ice cream, and it is spectacular.

First, chose your flavor: Dark Chocolate, White Chocolate Vanilla Bean or Swirl. The softserve is made with Godiva chocolate, which makes it more intensely, more deliciously flavored right off the bat.

Godiva designed custom soft serve machines to deliver the densest, creamiest mouthfeel.

And it gets better: There are crunchy Belgian waffle cones. Choose from plain, dipped in either milk or dark chocolate, or our favorite, dark chocolate with praline almonds (shown in the photo).

Don’t like cones? You can have your softserve in a five ounce cup.

We had the opportunity to try all three flavors recently at the Godiva boutique in Rockefeller Center (52 West 50th Street, between 5th & 6th Avenues). What happiness!

And it doesn’t break the calorie bank. A large waffle cone with softserve is 380 calories in a plain cone, 470 in the almond praline cone. It’s worth every calorie.

Bring A Friend To Happy Hour

During Godiva Happy Hour, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. daily, the second cone is half price.

We also noted on the company website that there are punch cards for the soft serve and the Trufflelata shake: Buy six in any combination, the next one’s free.

What better way to celebrate National Ice Cream Month than with a great new soft serve ice cream?

Go for the Godiva, ladies and gents! Go often!

Use this store locator to find the Godiva store nearest to you.
 
  

Today’s tip was inspired by The Strawberry Barbara, a sundae from McConnell’s Ice Cream in Santa Barbara.

McConnell’s marries strawberry ice cream, house-made rhubarb sauce (think rhubarb pie filling), and pie crust crumbles, topped with whipped cream.

You can build the sundae in a bowl or a sundae dish, on a dessert plate, or even in a large wine goblet.

You can also use the topping on puddings and yogurt.
 
 
RECIPE: PIE DOUGH CRUMBLES VERSION 1

Ingredients For The Pie Dough Crumbs

 
 
RECIPE: PIE DOUGH CRUMBLES VERSION 2

If you’d like crumbles with a deeper flavor, use this recipe, which substitutes some of the white sugar with brown sugar.

Ingredients For The Pie Dough Crumbs

 
Preparation For Both Versions

1. PREHEAT oven to 400°F.

2. MIX the ingredients together to form large, moist clumps form (we tend to like them in the larger size, about 1/2 inch diameter). If the ingredients stick together too much to make crumbs, add a bit more flour and sugar in a 2:1 ratio until the mixture becomes crumbly.

3. BAKE on a sheet for 10-15 minutes until golden (but not brown). Let cool; store in an airtight container until ready to use.
 
 
ASSEMBLING THE SUNDAE

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. SCOOP ice cream onto a plate. Top with pie crumbles.

2. ADD garnishes and serve.
 

[1] Strawberry ice cream with pie dough crumbles (photo © McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams).

[2] Key lime ice cream on a bed of crumbles (photo © McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams).

[3] You can also make cinnamon-accented streusel crumbs to top your ice cream (or cake, cupcakes, and single-crust pies. Here’s the recipe (photo © Frosting & Fettuccine).

CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

A Great Juice Story

Deprived of their original resources, many Native American tribes have fallen into unfortunate circumstances, struggling economically and facing the ills that come with hardship.

The Seminole Tribe of Florida, through the careful leadership of their elders, managed to overcome such bleak circumstances. The Tribe became self-sufficient through economic development enterprises located on six reservations throughout the State of Florida, one of which is citrus farming.

Economic success has enabled them to reach out to help struggling Native Nations as well as local communities, through product donations, financial contributions and sponsorships.

Earlier this year, the Tribe teamed with the Roe family, fourth generation distributors and growers of the Noble brand of fruits and juices, to launch a new brand, Seminole Pride Noble. The line includes natural and organic juices in apple, blood orange, grapefruit, lemonade, orange, orange tangerine, red grapefruit, tangerine and tangerine clementine.

The operation is committed to sustainable citrus farming and to the environment in general; even the bottles used are 100% sustainable and are made at the juicing facility, keeping the total business carbon footprint environmentally friendly.

One of 10 Seminole Pride juices. Photo courtesy Noble Juice.

Look for the juices (here’s a store locator), and check out the delicious recipes on the website. A little bit of juice perks up the flavor in everything from salads and slaws to meats and sautéed veggies.

RECIPE: BLOOD ORANGE MERINGUE PIE

You don’t even have to squeeze oranges to make this splendid pie. Just buy the blood orange juice! Prep time 30 minutes plus chilling, bake time 10 minutes plus cooling.

Instead of a standard pie crust, we used this graham cracker crust recipe from Key lime pie.

Ingredients For 8 Servings

Preparation

1. PREHEAT oven to 350°F.

2. MAKE the meringue: In a stand mixer or large glass or metal bowl, whip egg whites until foamy. Add 6 tablespoons sugar gradually and continue to whip egg whites until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

3. MAKE the filling: In a saucepan, whisk together the remaining cup of sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt. Whisk in water and blood orange juice, making sure to eliminate any lumps. Cook over medium-high heat until mixture comes to a boil. Stir in butter and whisk until melted. Temper the egg yolks by slowly adding ¼ cup of the hot filling mixture to the egg yokes, whisking to combine. Whisk egg yolk mixture into filling mixture. Continue whisking mixture until thick. Remove from heat and pour into cooled pie shell.

Cover filling with meringue, making sure to seal the edges.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes or until the meringue is golden brown.

 
More about blood oranges.

No Margaritas today: Celebrate July 24th, National Tequila Day, with a different tequila cocktail.

Perhaps you’d prefer some tequila ice pops, too.

Here’s a cocktail suggestion from Tequila Avión, incorporating ripe summer papaya.
 
 
RECIPE #1: PAPAYA SMASH

Ingredients For 1 Drink

 
Preparation

1. MUDDLE a slice of fresh papaya and agave nectar in a mixing glass. Add the tequila Aperol and orange juice. Top off with fresh lime juice. Add ice and give it a good shake.

2. STRAIN into an ice-filled glass and garnish with a fresh slice of papaya.

Papaya and tequila: an inspired combination. Photo courtesy Tequila Avión.

RECIPE #2: TEQUILA & COKE

Those who enjoy a rum and Coke can celebrate with the tequila version. Coffee lovers can buy Avion’s Espresso Tequila and make this cocktail, “The Rally,” with 1 part Avión Espresso Tequila and 2 parts cola.

Find more recipes at TequilaAvion.com.
 

APEROL VS. CAMPARI

Like the better-known Campari, Aperol is an Italian apéritif, a dry alcoholic beverage usually served before a meal to stimulate the appetite. Other apéritif examples include champagne, gin, pastis, dry sherry (fino or amontillado), vermouth, and any still, dry, light white wine.

Aperol is milder, less bitter and much lighter in color. Its ingredients include, among others, bitter orange, gentian, rhubarb, and cinchona. Although it tastes and smells much like Campari, Aperol has an alcohol content that is less than half of Campari (Aperol is 11% A.B.V.), with the same sugar content.

The opposite of an apéritif, a digestif is an alcoholic beverage served after a meal, in theory to aid digestion. Examples include brandy, eaux de vie (fruit brandies), grappa (pomace brandy), liqueurs, and fortified wines such as cream sherry, sweet vermouth, Port, and Madeira.