Here are some recipes from the August 2006 issue of Gourmet magazine:

You can make your own creme fraiche, but I think you could try some sour cream in its place. This soup is served cold.

Zucchini Cucumber Soup
1 pound zucchini, chopped
3/4 pound seedless cucumber, peeled and chopped (2 cups)
1/3 cup chopped sweet onion such as Vidalia
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon chopped fresh hot green chili
1 1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 cup creme fraiche

Puree the zucchini, cucumber, onion, vinegar, water, chile, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon coriander in a blender until very smooth. Whisk remaining salt and coriander with the creme fraiche and serve as a garnish on each serving of soup.

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This next one makes one serving. It is supposed to be served at room temperature, so prepare it 20 to 30 minutes before serving. Whew! I suppose it takes longer to describe it than to make it. Notice how many pans and bowls are involved? Well, take the idea and put your own interpretation on it.

Flat Zucchini Omelet
1 pound small zucchini
1 1/8 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon finely chopped marjoram or a pinch of dried marjoram
2 large eggs
1 large pinch black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Trim the ends off the zucchini and grate it coarsely. Toss with 1 teaspoon salt in a large bowl and let stand 30 minutes. Transfer to a colander, then firmly squeeze handfuls to remove excess liquid. Heat olive oil in a 10-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, and saute the zucchini, stirring until golden, 6 to 7 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the marjoram, then let it cool to warm, about 15 minutes.

Use a fork to lightly beat the eggs with the zucchini, pepper, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Heat butter in a 7 to 8 inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until the foam subsides and the butter has a nutty fragrance. Add the egg mixture, distributing the zucchini evenly, and cook, lifting up the egg around the edges occasionally to let any uncooked egg flow underneath, until egg is set around the edge, about 1 minute.

Reduce the heat to moderately low and cook until softly set but top is still moist, about 3 minutes. Shake the skillet to loosen the omelet from the pan and slide it onto a large plate.

Wearing oven mitts, invert the skillet over the omelet, then hold the skillet and plate together and invert the omelet, browned side up, into the skillet. Cook until the underside is set, about 1 minute, then slide onto a serving plate.

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Here's an easy one.

Mixed Nut Shortbread1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
3/4 cup salted mixed nuts, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon sugar

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Stir together butter and 1/3 cup sugar with a wooden spoon until combined well. Stir in the vanilla, then flour and mix with your hands to form a dough. Transfer to a lightly-greased cookie sheet and spread evenly with your fingers to form an 8 inch square. Sprinkle the nuts over the dough and press down. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar and bake 20 to 25 minutes, until deep golden. Put the baking sheet on a rack and cool 10 minutes. Cut into 18 (3 by 1 1/2 inch) bars.

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I have to tell you, though, Gourmet's recipes since 2005 or so have had very little appeal for me. The editors changed the look of the magazine, and something about the recipes just leaves me cold. Maybe they are too involved, for example the complexity of the directions. I don't remember when I cancelled my subscription, but I haven't missed reading their latest issues.