Fresh veggies are something that I look forward to every summer.
And not just any fresh veggies either.
I'm talking about the delicious goodies that are either given to you in a plastic grocery bag from a neighbor down the street or were grown in a garden in your own back yard. I guess the ones you buy at the farmer's market would suffice, but there is just something special about being surprised with a bag full of home grown vegematation 😉
My mom is probably going to die...just DIE...when she sees that I am not only eating squash casserole, but that I'm actually cooking it myself and posting the recipe to prove it!
When I was little, my mom tried to get me to eat a few bites of squash casserole that she had made.
I absolutely refused to touch the stuff.
And I sat at the table with my arms crossed just a huffin' and puffin' away b/c my mom refused to let me get up from the table until I tried it.
I have *no clue* where my stubbornness came from 😉
Finally, after what seemed like days, I gave in and tried it.
And then I involuntarily got my mom back for torturing me with the stuff.
Let's just say the carpet in her beautifully decorated dining room never looked the same after that night...and my mother never again forced foreign foods into my mouth.
Lucky for me, I fell in love with squash years later, and haven't stopped eating it since.
This casserole is light and healthy and is in no way overloaded with copious amounts of cream, butter, cheese, and eggs that most Southern casseroles are known for.
In fact, the butter and cheese can only be found in the topping of the dish.
The topping is crunchy and munchy and OH SO GOOD!
And, as it probably is with most of us, it's my favorite part.
Panko bread crumbs and soft and smoky gouda cheese take this casserole to a whole new level, but the smokiness doesn't overtake the flavor of the vegetables themselves. It just adds a hint of yummy goodness that enhances the brightness of the dish. A slight note of freshly ground nutmeg also adds a smidgen of sweetness and creates a depth to the dish that just isn't the same without it.
Serve this alongside my sweet tea infused roasted chicken (coming up on Wednesday!) and some freshly baked biscuits and you've got yourself a full blown southern supper that's healthy and guilt-free 🙂
Getting to know you...
Did your parent's ever force veggies down your throat?
What is a vegetable you can't stand?
What's your favorite cheese?
Smoked Gouda Zucchini & Squash Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 medium zucchini cut into halfmoons
- 1 medium yellow squash cut into halfmoons
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ of a large sweet onion diced
- 1 large garlic clove
- 1 teaspoon salt
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- ½ cup Panko bread crumbs
- 2 oz. smoked gouda cheese shredded
- 2 tablespoon light butter I use Land-O-Lakes
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Place sliced zucchini and squash in a small casserole dish.
- Heat a sauté pan over medium-high heat, add olive oil then onion, garlic, salt, and pepper and sauté until translucent and slightly browning around edges, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add the onion mixture to the casserole dish and stir until evenly distributed around the zucchini and squash.
- In a food processor (or even using clean hands) pulse/squeeze together the bread crumbs, cheese, butter, and nutmeg until it just sticks together and is thick and crumbly.
- Crumble the bread crumb mixture over the top of the casserole.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the topping is golden brown.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Mia says
This looks so tasty - but sadly, I'm not a fan of squash or zucchini. I always get myself into trouble this way...seeing pretty foods online, thinking they must be better than the way I've been preparing similar ingredients, then not liking them any better when I eat them. Le sigh.
My parents never forced me to eat much of anything. When I was about 2, they made me eat fish (probably catfish or jack). I kept saying my mouth hurt, but no one believed me because I was always a picky eater. An hour later, I was covered in hives from head to toe. Turns out I have a good number of allergies, including fish and shellfish. They stopped forcing me to eat stuff after that 😉
As an aside, I'm the worst biscuit maker EVER! I tried again last night using a King Arthur recipe - and those are always spectacular. I got a sort of spongy shortbread 🙁 Any tips from my favorite southern cook?
amber says
Mia, I am still looking for that perfect biscuit recipe! I used to have one that was absolutely delicious and would knock your socks off...but they were made with butter flavored crisco!!! I *can not* justify that anymore!!! I'm still working on one and will get it posted as soon as I can. It's really hard to test biscuit recipes in the south during the summer. All the butter melts before you can get the dough kneaded!
Mia says
Any chance I can convince you to email me the not-so-healthy biscuit recipe? When I cook for family gatherings, I don't stick strictly to healthy recipes. My family actually just started thinking MAYBE I can cook last Christmas. I'm not ready to break out all my healthy foods on them yet 🙂
Any thoughts on how to generally make a biscuit recipe work? I wonder if I'm over-mixing the dough, but I really thought I was being very careful not to yesterday 🙁
amber says
I'll definitely send you the recipe, and you best consider yourself lucky b/c this is the real deal! It's my grandmother's recipe 🙂 How are you mixing the dough? Are you using your hands or a blender/machine? Whatever you do...ONLY MIX WITH YOUR (CLEAN) HANDS. It's a trick I learned from my grandmother years and years ago. You mix the dough until it just comes together, and as soon as it does, you stop! Plus, all of the ingredients need to be cold...like *ICE* cold! The magic in a biscuit happens when the butter/lard melts as they are cooking. That's what causes them to puff up the way they do. If the ingredients aren't cold, they are going to be flat, flat, flat. That's why it's super hard to make biscuits during the summer! Put all of the ingredients in the fridge/freezer an hour or so before you are ready to use them and then mix with your hands and you should be good to go. I'll email you the recipe now 🙂
All That I'm Eating says
I'm always looking for new things to do with courgettes and this sounds lovely. My parents always made me eat my veg and I'm so grateful to them for it now!
amber says
I'm so grateful that I love veggies now too! I love them so much. Especially brussels sprouts! They are like candy to me!
Nancy says
This was really good. My husband even liked it, which is amazing. I substituted mozzarella cheese for the Gouda. Tasty.