Documentary to discuss 'Don't Ask'

A Wednesday documentary showing in Lincoln and a Thursday town hall meeting in Omaha will address "Voices of Honor: A Generation Under 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.'"

The PBS documentary "Ask Not" will air at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Van Brunt Visitors Center, 313 N. 13th St. A Q&A will follow.

A town hall discussion about repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" begins at 6 p.m. Thursday at W. Dale Clark library, 215 S. 15th St. in Omaha.

The event is sponsored by the Human Rights Campaign, a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, and Servicemembers United, an organization of gay and lesbian troops and veterans.

Passed in 1993, the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law allows gay, lesbian and bisexual personnel to serve in the armed forces as long as their sexual orientation is not publicly disclosed. As of 2008, more than 13,000 men and women have been fired from the military because of their sexual orientation. Some former congressional and senior military leaders involved in creating "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" have called for the law to be reviewed or repealed, including former Joint Chiefs Chairmen Gen. John Shalikashvili and Gen. Colin Powell. The Military Readiness Enhancement Act, which would repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," was introduced in the U.S. House earlier this year.

To learn more, visit: www.hrc.org/VoicesOfHonor.

Tell us of your crazy vegetables

Finally: Gardens are heating up and producing mountains of vegetables.

Every year, a few vegetables exceed expectations. They might be giant-sized. Or shaped like Mickey Mouse. Or multi-colored.

For an upcoming story in 926 Prairie Lane, we'd like to know about those kinds of odd and crazy edibles.

Send or e-mail your photos and comments about the garden produce (type, what makes it odd, size, etc.) with your name and contact information to kmoore@journalstar.com or to Kathryn Cates Moore, 926 P Street, Lincoln Journal Star, Lincoln, NE 68508.

Deadline for this story information is Wednesday.

What to drink with zucchini

Speaking of vegetables, zucchini is the summer vegetable that keeps on giving. If you grow zucchini, you've probably got more than you know what to do with.

Time to make it into a drink: Food Network host Claire Robinson is using zucchini to make a zucchini tini.

"Zucchini is an awesome vegetable, and it actually contains quite a bit of water," she says. "I love to extract the delicate flavor of zucchini water and add it to cocktails when serving zucchini. This carries the vegetable's notes throughout a meal."

To make zucchini water, Robinson grates a large zucchini into a fine mesh strainer set over a bowl. She then tosses the grated zucchini with a pinch of coarse salt and allows it to sit for 15 minutes.

The grated zucchini then can be pressed (using hands or the back of a wooden spoon) to extract the water.

Another good pairing with zucchini is mint. Robinson says if you want to save your zucchini for the meal, serve up a classic mojito.

ZUCCHINI TINI

½ ounce (1 tablespoon) zucchini water

2 ounces unfiltered cold sake

1 ounce gin

1 thin slice of zucchini, for garnish

In a cocktail shaker, combine the zucchini water, sake and gin. Fill the shaker with ice, then shake well and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with the zucchini slice.