ugly CSA week 6

[cellio]

• 3 ears corn
• 2 largish tomatoes
• 1 large red onion
• 1 large zucchini (zucchinus?)
• 2 peaches
• 9 Bartlett pears

Total weight about 7.5 pounds.

Two peaches aren't enough to make cobbler; we'll just have to eat them straight, or grilled -- so not a hardship! That's a lot of pears; I should look for a pie recipe or make pearsauce, maybe. (Are Bartletts good in pies? I think I've usually baked with Bosc, though I don't have a ton of experience either way.)

Comments

[thnidu]

«I think it's "zucchino' in the singular.»

In Italian, but not used in English. Cf. biscotti, spaghetti, ravioli (all grammatically masculine in Italian), and linguine (feminine)*

Etymonline
(https://www.etymonline.com/):
zucchini (n.)
1915 in English cookery books, 1910 in travel books about Italy as an ltalian word (defined as "an odd kind of little squash, very tender and palatable"), from Italian, plural of zucchino, diminutive of zucca "gourd, squash", perhaps from Late Latin cucutia, which is of unknown origin.

American Heritage Dictionary (https://www.ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=zucchini)
zuc-chi-ni (zoo-kē'nē) n. pl. zucchini or zuc-chi-nis
variety of summer squash (Cucurbita pepo) having an elongated shape and a smooth, thin, dark green rind. [Italian, pl. of zucchino, diminutive of zucca, gourd, from Late Latin cucutia; possibly akin to Latin _cucurbita-, gourd]

*(https://www.ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=linguine)
lin-gui-ne also lin-gui-ni (ling-gwē'nē) n
Pasta in long, flat, thin strands. [Italian, pl. of linguina, diminutive of lingua, tongue, from Latin; see LINGUA.]

Respectfully submitted,
Dr. Whom: Consulting Linguist, Grammarian, Orthoëpist, and Philological Busybody

[hlinspjalda]

Thank you, Doctor. :-D

Although I know some of my Campanian-American relatives' characteristic cooking argot (e.g., "monigott" for "manicotti," "rigot" for "ricotta," etc.), I don't think I've ever heard one of them refer to a zucchini in the singular. I know we don't say "zucchino" in English, but I thought it might be amusing for me to speak Italian-American to Italian-American on this one.

(OT: I have downloaded your dissertation; my spouse used to be an ASL interpreter.)

[cellio]

Thank you for all this information!