Last day of August, last days of summer; home gardens are bursting with produce. About a week ago, our friend Lisa called. “Whatcha doin?” I answered, “We’re at work!” She asked, “How long ya’ gonna’ be there?” “At least until 7”, I answered. Well, I’m gonna’ come by.” “OK, we’ll be here.” About an hour later, Lisa pulled up in her RV. She opened the back hatch and pulled out a? I couldn’t see what she had retrieved from the back of her van. In a minute, she entered our sales office. She was carrying a giant, over grown zucchini, practically the size of an infant! “Cuccaz!” I exclaimed. “What are you talking about? she said.
When friends came bearing gifts of large vegetables at the end of summer, Mom would say, “Cuccaz”. I’ve heard this term all my life. I’d ask, Ma? She would respond, “What?” I asked, “What do you mean when you say ‘Cuccaz’?” clearly dialect for some Italian word referring to squash or zucchini. Mom would continue, “If you don’t mind, don’t bring me these big overgrown hollow vegetables full of seeds. If you want to bring me a gift, bring the little tender vegetables not these, ‘Cuccaz’! She would say.
Lisa had accepted the task of tending Mari Ann’s garden while she was in Italy. Lisa had visited her family in New York and could not get to Marianne’s garden daily. In fact, when she returned and checked her garden, she found several ‘Cuccaz!’
I finally had to figure out where this term originated. In fact I studied Italian in college. I tried to find words such as ‘Biscout’ and ‘fugaz’ in the Italian dictionary. I soon realized that the words were Italian dialect and no where to be found. Finally, I figured that ‘Biscout’ is biscotti, ‘fugaz’ is focaccia. The closest I could find for ‘Cuccaz’ is zucca. Zucca is zucchini in Italian and zucchini is a variety of squash. This could be the root word for Mom’s term; she would also express that the oversized zucchini was like a pumpkin, full of seeds! Lisa, Rick and I laughed joyously over Lisa’s gift of zucchini. Lisa snapped a photo and off she went to give another of her friends a prize zucchini.
Next day, Saturday, Rick and I did our morning ritual: exercise, breathe, stretch, enjoy our summer garden, walk and eat breakfast. Another morning ritual, Rick prepares breakfast while I work at my desk or in this case, do a little gardening: clip the flowering buds from the basil plant, pick ever ripening figs and enjoy our beautiful weather. We ate alfresco at our garden table. Rick placed my plate in front of me; I took one look and exclaimed, “ ‘Cucca d’ sid d’ uoav’!” OMG. Rick had taken the zucchini, shredded it, sautéed it with onion and tomato and poached an egg on top, an instant flash back of my early life with Mom. In dialect, this meant zucchini cooked with tomato and egg. Mom would cube the zucchini and tomato, stew it and then beat an egg in it. Any way you cook it, they all are ‘Cucca d’sid d’ uoav’! Keep in mind that this was the oversize, overgrown zucchini that would need this type of preparation. Shredding, stewing, slow cooking to achieve tender results! ‘Cuccaz’!
Nancy V
I want to be your freind!