My Mom Has Been Making This Lunch Every Day for Over 40 Years

My parents ran an engineering firm when I grew up, and while my dad often went out for business lunches, my mom preferred to stay in and eat at her desk. She had a nook that overlooked the trees along the street, and the view was fairly cheerful compared to the office’s otherwise unremarkable interior.

Over the years, her IBM Selectric typewriter changed to a word processor and then a series of personal computers. Secretaries and architects and interns came and went, but one thing remained constant: what she ate for lunch.

She made the exact same thing for 25 years at least, but the recipe itself is something she’d been cooking for probably 40 years. And, now that she’s retired, she still eats it for lunch every day. It’s her power food.

The Story Behind Mom’s Zucchini

Mom was the office manager, though that’s majorly underplaying it. She was the glue that held their small business together, all while doing the things a mom does: hauling me and my brother to practices, appointments, and slumber parties. Besides, my dad was plenty enough to handle as a spouse, but she had to work with him every day. I’m gobsmacked they’re still together!

She needed fuel to keep her going, something nourishing but not taxing. At some point when I was very young, she ran across a short recipe in the Better Homes & Gardens Heritage Cookbook that caught her eye. It was a rustic vegetable stew of potatoes, zucchini, and tomatoes, quite unlike the minute steaks and pot roast she churned out for our family dinners.

Eventually she started calling it “my zucchini,” as in “I need to go stock up on canned tomatoes while they’re on sale so I have them ready for my zucchini.” It was something she made for herself, and herself only. The dinners she cooked had more to do with budget, convenience, and what my family would eat with minimal complaining. Mom’s zucchini recipe was her food sanctuary.

What Makes This a Great Lunch

One pot of this stuff comes together in less than half an hour and will last all week–perfect for the kind of person who doesn’t want to poke around in the fridge scrounging up leftovers. Mom’s always buzzing around doing something, and even though she stopped working ten years ago, convenient and comforting lunches still offer plenty of allure.

Turns out she’s still tweaking the recipe to this day. You can read her variations after the recipe.

How To Make My Mom’s Zucchini Con Patate

For six servings, you’ll need:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 large or 4 small Yukon Gold potatoes
• 2 medium zucchini
• 2 (16-ounce) cans diced tomatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon Aleppo pepper flakes or freshly ground black pepper
• Grated Parmesan or crumbled feta cheese, for serving, optional

In a medium Dutch oven or 4-quart pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until it’s tender but not brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add the potatoes, zucchini, tomatoes and their juices, and herbs. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. You can cover the pot midway to help the potatoes cook evenly, but it’s nice to let the liquid reduce a little first since the zucchini will also release liquid as it cooks. The finished dish will be on the soupy side.

Season with the salt and pepper flakes or black pepper to taste.

Mom’s Variations

• The original recipe called for black pepper, but a few years ago she started using Aleppo pepper instead.
• Mom likes to use 1 can of regular diced tomatoes and 1 can of fire-roasted tomatoes.
• Ever a fan of ALDI, mom sometimes adds a big dab of their sun-dried tomato pesto to the pot as everything cooks.  
• Serving crumbled feta cheese on top adds a lively flavor and makes this lunch more filling.
• Skip the cheese and add a big spoonful of basil pesto on top when serving.
• This is my twist: I like topping a bowl with a poached egg (now that I work in an office myself, I use the microwave to poach it). 
• If you don’t like the zucchini falling apart, don’t add it until the potatoes are mostly cooked though.