Zucchini Casserole

I have a go to zucchini casserole dish for potlucks and family dinners... you know the one... with the cream of mushroom soup, stuffing mix and cheese.  I have a bad habit of not looking for another recipe for something if I have one I'm already happy with, and I admit this sometimes keeps me from finding something new.  This weekend I decided to get out of my rut and try a new recipe, and luckily I was pleasantly surprised with the results.  This casserole turns out to be a bit like a quiche, and it's REALLY good.  It's also pretty versatile, you can change up the seasonings, the cheese and even the topping.... I think next time I might even horrify my children by throwing in a few mushrooms :)

2  lb. zucchini, sliced
4 eggs
1/2 cup half and half
1/2 lb grated sharp cheddar
1/2 lb grated 4 cheese Mexican blend
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp onion salt
1/4 tsp garlic salt
Dash pepper
2 tsp. baking powder
3 tbsp. flour
French fried onion rings (canned)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook sliced zucchini in boiling water 5minutes.  Drain well, blotting excess water with a paper towel if needed.  (You can also steam them in the microwave).

Beat eggs, milk, cheese, salt, pepper, baking powder and flour together. Add zucchini to pot, mix. Place in buttered 2 quart casserole. Bake 25 minutes.  Sprinkle onions on top and continue cooking another 10-15 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cauliflower Gratin

Well, it's that time of year again... I'm on the hunt for new Thanksgiving sides to bring to my Mom's.  Of course, I still make the traditional sides that have become holiday staples for our family, but I also like to bring one new dish each year.  As I said in my previous post, it was a perfect stay inside and cook weekend, so I started with this recipe.  The original is from Ina Garten's Barefoot in Paris, but I changed a few things to suit my taste.  I have to say this was one of the best side dishes I've had in a long time... the texture and slight sweetness from the cauliflower is a nice fit with the creamy saltiness of the cheese sauce.  The best part... it's really easy to make!

2 heads cauliflower, cut into large florets
Kosher salt
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, divided
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup half and half
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp white pepper
3/4 cup freshly grated Gruyere
1/2 cup freshly grated Romano cheese
1/3 cup panko
1/3 cup french fried onions

Preheat the oven to 375º. 

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add cauliflower and cook for about 3 minutes.  Cauliflower should be just starting to get tender, but not cooked all the way through.  Drain, and set aside. 

In a medium sauce pan, melt 2 Tbs butter over medium heat. Whisk flour into melted butter and cook, stirring constantly for a minute or two.  Slowly add milk and half and half, whisking constantly until smooth.  Heat to a simmer, continuing to stir the whole time, mixture should thicken slightly. Mix in onion powder, garlic powder, nutmeg and pepper and reduce heat to low.  Stir in cheeses a little at time until smooth.

Put drained cauliflower into a 9x13" baking dish and pour cheese sauce over, stirring to coat. Place in oven and bake 20-25 minutes.

Place french fried onions in a ziploc bag and crush into small crumbs.  Add panko and remaining 2 Tbs melted butter.  Close bag and shake well to coat all crumbs.  Sprinkle evenly over the top of the cauliflower and bake an additional 5-10 minutes or until topping is browned and crisp. 

Serves 6-8 as a side.

Roasted Root Vegetable Gratin

This is another dish that came up in my search for new Thanksgiving sides.  I think this one fits quite nicely into what I consider traditional New England Fall cooking, with a tiny bit of a modern twist (I doubt my mother or grandmother ever got their hands on a wedge of aged Asiago).  This recipe is pure comfort, a little sweet from the carmelization of the vegetables, a little salty, a little creamy with a slight sharpness from the Asiago... just perfect.

I will admit that this was my first experience with parsnips.  I'm not really sure why I'd never had them before, both of my parents claim to have liked them, and they were certainly a readily available local ingredient in New England.  My best guess would be that I have to blame my younger brother for never having tried them before.... as a child he absolutely refused to eat any vegetable unless it was orange or yellow, sweet potatoes, carrots, squash, and corn were about the only veggies he would eat without an hour's worth of dinner table drama.  I remember him dropping green vegetables under the table for the dog, and then trying to reason with my parents that if the dog wouldn't eat it there must be something wrong with it.  Amazingly, he'll eat almost anything now. 

Ok, back to the point... if you're a fan of root veggies, this is a MUST try, and it will definitely be on my Thanksgiving day menu :)

1  small butternut squash (about 2-1/2 pounds), peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
2  medium parsnips (about 1 pound), peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium rutabaga, peeled and cut in 1-inch pieces
1  large sweet red pepper, cored, seeded and sliced into 1/4-inch strips
1  medium red onion, peeled and cut into 1-inch wedges
2  tablespoons olive oil
1/2  teaspoon salt
1/4 tsp onion salt
1/4  teaspoon black pepper
1  tube(18 ounces) heat-and-serve polenta
1/4  cup half-and-half
1/2  cup shredded Asiago cheese
8  sprigs fresh thyme
1. Heat oven to 375°F.
2. Toss squash, parsnips, red pepper and onion with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place vegetables in a large roasting pan and roast at 375°F for 45 minutes, stirring twice.
3. Coat a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Slice polenta into 12 slices, each about 1/2-inch thick. Fit slices into the bottom of the baking dish.
4. Spoon vegetables over polenta slices. Drizzle with half-and-half and sprinkle with cheese. Scatter thyme over top.
5. Bake at 375°F for 20 minutes or until bubbly. Allow to cool slightly before serving

Baked Creamy Orzo and Spinach

I've been on the hunt for Thanksgiving side recipes for a while now, this one isn't quite what you'd call traditional, but it meets a few criteria: it's easy and fairly quick, it's very good (kind of like a gourmet florentine mac and cheese) and it makes a lot!  The kids and I both loved this... it has a nice contrast of textures, from the velvety softness of the orzo to the creaminess of the cheese and cream to the crunchiness of the onions.  Definitely a keeper for the recipe files!

1 tablespoon salt
1 pound orzo (rice-shaped pasta)
two 10 ounce packages frozen spinach
2 garlic cloves
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup canned chicken broth
2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese (about 4 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
a few handfuls french fried onions

Bring a pot of water to a boil, add the salt and orzo and boil 4
minutes. Add the
spinach and cook 5 minutes more or until the orzo is al dente.
Drain the mixture
in a sieve and rinse under cold water. Drain well.

Mince and mash the garlic to a paste with 1/4 teaspoon salt and
add put it in a
large bowl. Add the cream, broth, cheese, pepper, nutmeg, orzo
and spinach and combine
well. Transfer the mixture to a buttered baking dish.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes until bubbly and beginning to brown a bit.  Sprinkle french fried onions over the top for the last 5 minutes of cooking time.

Baked Cranberry Sauce

My Mom makes the best homemade cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving, seriously, people rave about it.  For some reason I always thought it was some long involved process that I would never have the patience for... something similar to making preserves and canning them (I know... not that hard, but just can't bring myself to do it!).

Last Thanksgiving was my first shot at hosting the day as my Mom had to work.  Granted I didn't have a houseful of people coming (that would be done at my Mom's the next day), but I wanted to make a good show of it... and as my children informed me, it just wouldn't be Thanksgiving without homemade cranberry sauce.  Believe me, I considered buying a few cans of the whole berry stuff and faking it, even thought about begging my Mom to make a little extra for me. Then I put on my big girl pants and Googled it.... really??  that's IT?  You're kidding.  ---- Nope.  This is really all there is to it.  My Mom got a good chuckle out of me thinking it was some big secret project she did every year too...  so maybe you can make someone think this is your big secret project this year.   Enjoy! :)

1 (12- ounce) bag fresh cranberries
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup brandy
pinch of cinnamon


Combine the cranberries, sugars, and cinnamon in a 2 qt backing dish and cover with foil and bake for 1 hour at 350º. Remove the cover and stir to make sure there's no undissolved sugar. Return to the oven, uncovered and bake for about 5 to 10 more minutes, or until the cranberries are soft and sauce has thickened to a syrupy consistency. Remove from the oven and stir in brandy. Allow to cool and then refrigerate for at least 1 hour, preferably overnight before serving.

Ultimate Scalloped Potatoes

Potatoes, butter, garlic, cheese, heavy cream... is there ANYTHING better? This is one of those dishes I treat myself to only once in a while. Not only is it a little time consuming (although not TOO bad if you have a halfway decent mandolin), it's also full of fat and calories, which I guess is why it's SOOO good.

Last week I picked up a spiral sliced ham on sale for easter, but ended up making leg of lamb instead. I saved the ham for today and couldn't think of a better side dish to go with it, besides, I already had the fontina and gruyere cheeses in the fridge needing to be used up.

Ultimate Scalloped Potatoes

1 clove garlic, minced
1 shallot, minced
1 tbs butter
1 cup whipping cream
1/3 cup milk
1/8 tsp black pepper
2 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, sliced into 1/8" thick rounds
1 cup coarsely grated Gruyere cheese
1 cup coarsely grated Fontina cheese
1 Tbs flour
4 green onions chopped (white and green parts, optional)
salt to taste

Saute garlic and shallots in butter in medium saucepan for 1 minute. Add cream, milk and black pepper, heath through but do not boil.

Mix grated cheeses and flour in medium bowl, until cheese is well coated.

Layer half of potatoes in lightly buttered 2 qt shallow casserole dish. Pour half of cream mixture over potatoes, sprinkle with salt, half of the cheeses and half of the chopped green onion. Repeat layers.

Bake in 350º oven 60 to 70 minutes until top is a deep brown and potatoes are tender.

Note: A Mandolin comes in very handy for this type of dish. If you don't have one, you can certainly use a sharp knife, but you can pick up an inexpensive mandolin for around $20 that will do the trick, there's no need to have the fancy $100 versions.

Bacon, Shallot and Garlic Green Beans

I'm pretty lucky. I don't have any trouble getting my kids to eat vegetables, in fact most of the time they'll clean the vegetables off their plates and pick at the meat. Yes, my kids are strange... but in a good way :)

This recipe is a favorite around here and gets made anytime there's leftover bacon (yes, Susan, I said LEFTOVER BACON). Granted, this is not how you want to cook green beans all the time, but it's great for a special occasion... they're easy enough to throw together while you have a roast in the oven and they look and taste impressive.

Bacon, Shallot and Garlic Green Beans

2 lbs fresh green beans, trimmed
4 slices bacon, cooked crisp and chopped
1 Tbs reserved bacon drippings
2 Tbs butter
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Cook green beans in boiling salted water for 4 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking.

Heat reserved bacon drippings and butter in a large saute pan on med-low heat. Add shallots and garlic and saute 1 minute, until fragrant. Add green beans, stirring to coat in butter mixture. Cover and cook about 8 minutes, stirring every few minutes. Add in chopped bacon and cook, stirring, another 2-3 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Sweet Potato and Scallion Latkes

It's been a while since I've posted a recipe, but this time of year is a busy one in our family... so my time is a little more limited than usual. Expect an onslaught of posts after the new year though.

Let me preface this recipe by saying that, in early November, I got to do something awesome. I not only got to meet my favorite chef, Cat Cora, I also got to spend a little time talking with her and her family, watch her prepare one of the recipes from her latest cookbook (Cooking From the Hip), AND sample the food too! As if anything could be better than that, we got to do all of this at Epcot's Food and Wine Festival in Walt Disney World. How all of this came about is a bit of a long story, but let me just say that Ms. Cora is a truly wonderful person who went FAR out of her way for a couple of her fans.

Anyway, I was given a copy of Cooking From the Hip during our visit, and promptly began reading it when we got home. This is one of the many wonderful recipes from the book. I highly recommend the book, the recipes are fun, classy and delicious!

1 pound sweet potatoes, grated (about 2 medium)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup, plus 2 tsp all purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 scallions, finely chopped
1/2 cup vegetable oil for frying
3 Tbs chopped fresh chives or scallions for garnish
(Cat also recommends creme fraiche and smoked trout as garnishes)

Grate sweet potatoes using the large holes of a box grater or food processor blade.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, flour, salt and pepper. Add the sweet potatoes and scallions and mix until the potatoes are well coated.

Heat 3-4 Tbs of the oil in a 12 inch non-stick skillet over medium high heat until the oil is hot, but not smoking. Spoon 1 Tbs of the potato mixture into the oil and flatten with a spatula to about 3 inches in diameter. Repeat, adding 2 to 4 more latkes and more oil as needed, but don't crowd the pan. Give yourself room to flip them without breaking any. Reduce heat to medium and cook until golden, about 2 minutes on each side. Transfer lateks to a paper towel lined plate to drain and then keep warm in a 300º oven. Add more oil to the pan as needed in between batches.

To serve, sprinkle with chives or scallions, or top with a spoonful or creme fraiche and a chunk of smoked trout.



Many thanks again to Cat Cora, Ashley and the staff at Disney for an awesome day!

Garlic Romano Roasted Potatoes

Potatoes are part of many of our meals in this house. My family loves them in almost every way, shape and form. New potatoes, red potatoes, Yukon golds and russets may end up in potato salad, mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes, baked potatoes, twice baked stuffed potatoes, potatoes au gratin, potato casserole... you get the idea :) And, no matter how many potatoes I cook, I rarely have any leftover for dinner the next night, if they aren't consumed with the meal I made them for, my son WILL finish them as a snack the next day. I can't really complain that my family loves potatoes so much either, they're inexpensive, versatile and easy to prepare.

This is one of our favorites. It's simple and delicious and really bad for you, but... but...YUM!

2 lbs small white new potatoes (you can use the small red ones too if you like)
3 Tbs olive oil
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 stick butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
freshly grated pecorino romano cheese, to taste
2-3 Tbs fresh, flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 425º.

Lightly oil a large baking sheet. Cut potatoes in half, or in quarters if they're bigger that about 1 1/2" in diameter, and place in a large bowl. Add olive oil, salt and pepper and toss to coat well. Place potatoes cut side up on prepared baking sheet and bake at 425º for 15 minutes. Turn potatoes cut side down and bake another 10 minutes. Check potatoes after 10 minutes, if they're still not tender enough turn them cut side up again and continue cooking another 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.

Melt butter in a small saute pan over low heat. Add garlic and cook just a few minutes, until garlic is mellowed and butter is infused with flavor. Place potatoes in serving dish, pour butter mixture over them, add chopped parsley and grated cheese ; toss to coat well.

ALWAYS make more of these than you think you need... they go fast! :)