Zucchini with Sour Cream

This is what your sauté pan will look like right before you decide to throw caution to the wind and just go ahead and lick the pan. Sure, it's probably the sour cream that deserves most of the credit for making it so good, but the zucchini flavor really shines through somehow. It's as if zucchini and sour cream were meant for each other. A love match of sorts. 
 

This recipe also comes from Recipes of All Nations by Countess Morphy and I included the original recipe in a photograph below. I tried to follow it as closely as possible, but when I researched the dish I started to wonder if I hadn't misinterpreted the directions. Then I watched someone make it on youtube, and now I'm certain that what I made and the dish enjoyed in Hungary are two very different things. But no matter! It's too good to change. Here is another recipe I found for Tokfozelek if you crave authenticity. The recipe below is my "interpretation". This would be great with buttered potatoes, but we ate it and loved it with steamed rice and an omelette. A Hungarian omelette, of course. 

Ingredients:
3-4 small zucchini
2-3 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon paprika
salt
1/2 tablespoon flour
1 cup sour cream

Directions:
1. Cut the zucchini in half and then slice into strips. Put the strips in a strainer with plenty of salt and leave to sweat for thirty minutes to an hour. When you're ready to start cooking, give it a quick rinse and a shake to get rid of most of the moisture. 
2. Melt the butter in a 12" skillet over medium heat and add the zucchini strips and paprika. Cook it for about five minutes but be careful not to let it get too hot- if the paprika burns it will all taste bitter. 
3. Stir in the flour and the sour cream and let it simmer for another 10 minutes. The sour cream starts to get thicker and cheesier. It probably won't need any more salt, but taste it to be sure.