Zucchini Rounds Simmered in Fresh Tomato Sauce

Here’s another simple but delicious recipe that I stole from my mother. I remember the first time I paid attention to her as she was cooking this dish: I had a kind of slow-motion epiphany when I saw that the secret to the slightly bitter, floral, pungent intensity of the zucchini was a single dried bay leaf. It was an example of the magic of cooking in full force. Just make sure the bay leaf is small or it can tip the whole thing overboard and make the sauce too bitter.