Spare Time in the Kitchen

My neighbor dropped off four Patty Pan squash as my daughter had mentioned that in the past, her mother-in law loved them, but she had never had any. Well I never had any either and researched how to use them. The first thing I realized was that the ones that were donated were very large. Most recipes on the internet said they are best about 3-4 inches in diameter. Well two of these are 7" and two others are 8" in diameter! What to do? How not to waste these?

Before daughter comes over to get them I experimented on one, just because I could! 

I happened to have a pound of maple bacon thawed and figured I'd incorporate some of it into a mixture of squash chunks. I remembered that I have three hot dog rolls in the freezer and thought I could cut them into small bread cubes. I had recently chopped and froze some onions and also have some fresh cloves of garlic on hand, so I proceeded to work on these items. 

The first thing I did was to scrub down all four squash. Then I picked one and put it in a pot of water about 1 inch deep and par-boiled it for about 10 minutes because the skin seemed very tough and thick. After letting it cool down I scooped out the (large) seeds and cut off the skin and made small chunks. All were put into a large bowl.

After draining and mashing the bacon, I smashed it in a baggie with my marble rolling pin, making smaller bits and pieces. About half went into the bowl. The cut up hot dog rolls went in next. The chopped onions, one minced garlic clove, shakes of pepper, salt, oregano, basil and thyme followed with about 1/2 cup of Parmesan-Romano cheese. All was mixed together by hand. I then patted it into a foil-lined glass baking dish, topping with drizzles of EVOO and a little 1/2 & 1/2. This was covered and put into the refrigerator overnight. 

Results tomorrow. I already had thawed some jumbo shrimp for my dinner.

The Butternuts

This popular singing group sits in my kitchen awaiting applause. Please give them a hand. They are not a side dish but the main course - so rich, so sweet, so unaware.

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Frugal Baking

Have you ever cut a 21/2 pound acorn squash in half, cleaned it out, baked it on a cookie sheet in the oven, and when it was done, scooped it out, mashed it with butter, salt and pepper, cinnamon and brown sugar? If you have, you would understand exactly why I just could not throw away the remaining squash from Thanksgiving dinner. I was happy to see that there were two cups left over as that is what a pumpkin pie calls for. I didn't use white sugar because I had already put brown sugar in the squash dish. I much prefer to make a pumpkin pie with sweetened condensed milk instead of evaporated milk but couldn't this time. It would have been way too sweet. I had also used cinnamon so I only had to add clove and ginger spices.  Sooooooooo, now we have a squash pie! YUM! 

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Yes, it was very tasty!! VERY.

Tasty Casserole

A friend called me a "FOODIE" and I think it is a complement - anyway I'll take it as one. Yes, I like to bake and cook and encourage others to use some of my recipes. I share them all. So...here is another foodie story.

A friend gave me some summer squash and I used my old Bluffton slicer and ripped right through the tender vegetable. Carrots and onions were shredded with the old type of utensil and then I made this recipe. I will tell you it was very good and the mister and I ate almost the entire casserole bowlful!

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I admit I added some extra bread crumbs on top, hoping it would bubble up and create a crispy crust. It didn't. The next time I make this I will try baking it in my cast iron skillet. That will brown the edges as the glass dish didn't do that. I used Progresso Italian bread crumbs in this recipe. I also used carrots as we don't care much for peppers.

Recipe

How to make Scalloped Squash: By Suzanne McMinn

2 cups (or so) sliced yellow squash
1 cup chopped onions and/or peppers (hot or sweet)
2 tablespoons butter
1 egg
2/3 cup milk
1 cup bread crumbs
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup shredded cheese (Cheddar or whatever)

Depending on how big the squash is, after slicing, either cut in halves or quarters.

Cook the squash and onions (and/or peppers) in butter till tender.

Combine egg, milk, bread crumbs, and a dash of salt and pepper in a large bowl. For me, one cup of bread crumbs is one thick slice of Grandmother Bread, crumbled finely in my mini food processor.

Stir in the squash mixture and the shredded cheese. Pour into a 1.5 quart greased casserole dish. Top with a sprinkling of fresh chopped chives if you’ve got ’em! My herb garden this weekend (the chives just got a haircut):

Bake at 350-degrees for about 30 minutes.

Also excellent for zucchini!

Now go forth and scallop.

http://chickensintheroad.com/cooking/its-summer-and-the-living-is-squashy/

Chalk it Up

Some days I get a lot of small projects completed and some days I accomplish nothing - nada - zero!

Today was a very good day. I conquered my to do list.

The oven went on and the brownies went in. Nothing to it!

The oven stayed on and the squash went in.

The squash came out, was scooped into a bowl and put aside for Thanksgiving day.

James has a cold head. The scissors did their job and the new hat was made. All I have to do now is to make something to wrap him up for winter's wrath.

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Summer Squash Soup - My Way

Bluffton Slaw Cutter

"Manufacturing one of the best Cutters and Graters in the world has been the goal of The Bluffton Slaw Cutter Company since it's founding in 1915.  This is achieved by hammered blades that wear sharp with use.  These tools are a life-time investment and are efficient, hand-operated and easy to use and clean.  The user controls the texture and thickness of fruits and vegetable by pressure and speed.  Major markets of the Bluffton, Ohio Company are the United States, Canada and Japan.

AKA/ Kraut Cutter: Fast-sweep pattern, speeds operation."

This 100 year old kitchen utensil once belonged to the Mister's mother and I use it regularly. I've sliced my thumb tip several times through the years and now remember to be very careful! My dishwashing basin works very well as a large bowl.

I have added one large chopped onion to the sliced squash.

All of my slicing and chopping was being done while the skins and bones from yesterday's barbeque chicken pieces were simmering on the stove to make the stock. I strained it with my old colander.

I sauteed in my old cast iron skillet. It sure smelled good in here!

I simmered the stock and vegetables for about 1/2 hour. 

The old blender was put to use after the mixture cooled down.

I had quite a cleanup but it was worth it! (You DO know not to wash your cast iron cookware in soapy water, don't you? )

The carrot/citron/poke cake I made yesterday went well with our bowls of the soup. No need to add shredded cheese or crumbled bacon. It is really very hearty! and tasty! I'll freeze the two quarts for another day. 

Don't forget to click on an image to view larger!

How to make Summer Squash Soup by Suzanne McMinn

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, sliced
1 pound yellow squash and/or zucchini, sliced
1 head garlic, peeled and chopped
5 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon seasoning*

*The recipe as written suggests lemon pepper, but you can choose any seasoning or herbs you like. I like it with crushed red pepper.

Saute onion, squash/zucchini, and garlic in a large skillet in the olive oil.

Add the chicken stock and simmer until the vegetables are tender.

Transfer mixture to a large blender–blend in batches if your blender isn’t big enough for the entire thing. You could also do this in batches in a large food processor.

Blend till smooth.

A little shredded cheese on top or crumbled bacon is really good with this soup. This soup would also be great with the addition of some cooked diced potatoes or chicken to make a more hearty meal. (Add potatoes or chicken post-blending.)

Recipe Source