Summer squash carpaccio

What's cooking? Not much around here you might say, but here's a little recipe that continues the non-cooking, while letting you eat in a flash. It's a beautiful and simple summer squash carpaccio. I've tried several variations of this in the last few weeks and so far, this recipe from Tyler Florence is my favorite. But it also lends itself to countless variations: tried it with some toasted pine nuts or walnuts, throw in some dill or chives, cut the squash lengthwise, rather than in disk, add tomatoes. You name it.

Summer Squash Carpaccio

Adapted from Food Network

2 medium zucchini or yellow squash
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 leek, white part only, sliced thinly
1/4 pound piece Parmesan
Fresh mint leaves, for garnish
Directions

Using a mandolin, vegetable peeler or a very sharp knife, slice zucchini into very thin rounds. I used a vegetable peeler for slicing: zucchini and squash are quite tender, so it works like a charm. I chose one zucchini and one yellow squash since it makes a pretty presentation.

Arrange zucchini disks slightly overlapping in a single layer on a plate and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with the olive oil and lemon juice and scatter with leeks. Shave very thin slices of Parmesan over the plate with a peeler. Scatter mint leaves over top and serve immediately.