Summer Squashes!
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-JT
/johnny
MMMMM. Spaghetti squash with an alfredo, sundried tomato and basil sauce! Look ma—no carbs!
Planted my yellow (crooked neck) and green (zuchini) squash last weekend. In my experience, the world should never starve as long a there is a zuchini growing somewhere. Can’t cook’em, can’em, or give’em away fast enough once they start producing.
I like zucchini better than summer squash. My favorite way to have them is the easiest - grill them. Slice young ones lengthwise in half. Spray or rub down with olive oil, salt & pepper or use whatever spice you like. I just grill them a bit, I like them to have some crunch inside.
[THE BEST] Sweet Potato Cake with Cream Cheese Icing
2 cups flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
2 cups sugar
1 ½ cups vegetable oil
4 eggs
3 15-oz cans of yams/sweet potatoes, drained
1 tsp vanilla
Preheat Oven to 325 degrees.
Combine dry ingredients, minus sugar, and set aside. Combine moist ingredients, plus sugar, and mix well with electric mixer. Add flour mixture and mix well.
Pour into three greased and floured cake pans and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before icing. Then, ice cake, sprinkling chopped pecans on each layer after icing.
Cream Cheese Icing
¾ box powdered sugar (sifted) 1 cup pecans, chopped
16 oz. cream cheese 1 tsp vanilla
1 stick butter
Cream butter, cream cheese and vanilla with electric mixer. Add sugar a little at a time and mix well. The more you whip it with the mixer, the fluffier it becomes.
I’m strangely responding to last week’s discussion on sardines, etc.
I was jazzed to find herring at a dollar store, both in oil and mustard. I got 10 cans. They either be prepped storage or eaten next week on crackers.
Hamburger
3/4 hamburger 1/4 pork = 1 hamporkburger
Frying pan
Add butter and 1/2 slice of onion.
Heat up and stir around then add the burger.
Cover pan and raise temp to sear both sides of burger then lower temp to cook to desired doneness.
This isn’t about summer squashes, but I wanted to share one of my extra-special soup recipes:
Veggie Beef Soup:
2 oz lean beef, browned (Yes, that says 2 OUNCES)
2 cups tomatoes (I use pureed or crushed, but diced works too)
1 cup carrots, thinly sliced
1 cup sweet peas
1 cup diced potato
1/2 tablespoon sesame seeds
1/8th tsp flax seeds
1/2 tsp salt substitute (the potassium kind, not the herbal kind)
1 tablespoon parsley flakes (or 5 sprigs fresh parsley)
Beef bullion, rosemary, and bay leaf, to taste.
Brown the beef, simmer until the veggies are cooked. You guys know how soups are made, so I won’t take too much time explaining it.
But, why is this soup extra-special? Because, if you eat this entire batch of soup, plus one egg, 2 12-oz glasses of milk, an ounce of dark chocolate, and 1/2 cup of sunflower seeds, you will have eaten 100% or more of the RDA of every vitamin and mineral, while only eating around 1600 calories!
Personally, that’s too much food for me. I can only eat about 1/3 of that. 1/2 if I’m super hungry. If anyone is having trouble sticking to a diet, try this one!
Kevkrom: You’ve mentioned on other threads how you’d like to find something that provides all the nutrients a person needs, here’s a start.
Wintertime: You mentioned on a thread that you (like me) have to keep below 1200 calories because of a hyper-efficient matabolism. Try cutting this eating plan in half, maybe it might help with the hunger pains?
I like to make a big batch of this soup, and another batch of split pea soup, on the weekends so I don’t have to cook much during the week. The split pea soup is also calculated, and with the two flavors I’m less likely to get bored. Sometimes I change the spices, making italian beef veggie soup with basil, garlic, and oregano instead of rosemary and bay. The parsley is neccesary, it’s a concentrated source of vitamin K.
Special Split Pea Soup:
1 oz chicken
1/2 cup carrots, thinly sliced
1 1/4 cup potato, diced
2 cups sweet peas
1 tablespoon parsley
1/2 tsp salt substitute
Chicken bullion, thyme, other seasonings to taste
Brown the chicken, simmer with the potatoes and carrots until they’re tender. Then, whiz the peas in a blender until smooth, using part of the cooking liquid. Add pea puree to the rest of the soup, and add seasonings. Simmer gently until done.
I like pureed fresh/frozen peas better than the dried ones. I think it gives it a better flavor. If you’d rather use the dried kind, just do the calculations to see how much to use (I don’t have that chart handy).
This soup also needs the same other foods (egg, milk, etc) in order to provide complete nutrition. You can swap the soups with each other if you like, so you aren’t eating the same flavor all day.
Let me know what you think!
(Disclaimers: I am not a nutritionist, none of this is to be mistaken for expert advice. Any spelling or grammatical errors are to be attributed to the fact that I’m typing in the dark while starting to fall asleep.)
Reminds me of lunch yesterday ... it was good:
Butternut squash cut about 1/4 inch thick. Layer with Béchamel sauce and pesto. Sprinkle with cheese and bake until tender.
Squash (with the exception of Acorn) is one last guy on a favorite list. Seldom eaten, and seldom prepared. Do bake the acorn which is lovely with cinnamon/nutmeg, butter and brown sugar. Yum...actually better than pumpkin. The Zucchini is usually eaten in a bread recipe.
Only recently found a recipe for yellow which might be attempted and tried. This found on PASSION FOR COOKING way back in the old web archives. Though squash is not a fav, DO LOVE CHEESE!!
Squash Souffle
Ingredients:
2 lbs. yellow squash, sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. sugar
3 Tbsp. melted butter
3 Tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup milk
1/2 lb. grated sharp cheese
buttered bread crumbs
Instructions:
Combine squash, onion, salt and sugar. Simmer with small amount of water for 20 minutes. Drain well. Mash with potato masher. Add remaining ingrediants, except bread crumbs. Bake at 325 degrees in a buttered 1 1/2 qt. casserole dish for 30 minutes. Top with bread crumbs and bake 10 minutes more. Can be stored in refrigerator 2 to 3 days unbaked. Freezes well also. Serves 8
Zucchini bread and lots of it! When our son was in 5th grade I packed some in his lunch. He shared it with his friend who’d never had it (remember when we were allowed to do that?). That afternoon, his friend asked me for the recipe so he could give it to his mother. Shocked the heck out of me!
Sometimes I’ll fry some zucchini, onions and potatoes as a side dish.
A funny story....every summer, the country club my SIL belonged to would pass the word that whoever left their car windows down would receive a generous gift...at least a bag of zucchini.
A no squash recipe....
When younger, French Toast was always FRIED, stove top style.
Only when older and omo was I introduced to Baked French toast. Of course, this, to me, was actually bread pudding, but still good. :)
A few years ago a Grand recipe was attempted for Christmas Morning of the baked version and this is much like the recipe used. This comes from Lanier BB (the the recipe was originally seen on BB on Line (another site completely)
FROM WEB ARCHIVES
http://lanierbb.com/recipes/
CREME BRULEE FRENCH TOAST
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients:
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 Tbsp corn syrup
8 to 9-inch round loaf country-style bread or French bread or baguette
5 large eggs
1 1/2 cup half and half
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp Grand Marnier
1/4 tsp salt
Instructions:
In a small heavy saucepan melt butter with brown sugar and corn syrup over moderate heat, stirring until smooth and pour into a greased 13X9X2 inch baking dish.
Cut six 1-inch thick slices from center portion of bread, reserving ends for another use, and trim crusts. (Baguettes can leave crust on). Arrange bread slices in one layer in baking dish, squeezing slightly to fit.
In a bowl, whisk together eggs, half and half, vanilla, Grand Marnier, and salt until combined well and ladle evenly over bread. Chill bread mixture, covered overnight.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bring bread to room temperature.
Bake bread mixture, uncovered, in middle of oven until puffed and edges are pale golden, 35 to 40 minutes.
Serve upside down immediately.
Another French Toast recipe was tried called caramel apple french toast. Believe this one I made with Granny Smith Apples It, too, is from Laniers BB
CARAMEL APPLE FRENCH TOAST RECIPE
Ingredients:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 Tbsp light corn syrup
1 cup chopped pecans
12 slices sweet French bread
4 apples, thinly sliced
7 eggs or egg-white product
1 3/4 cups skim milk
1 tsp vanilla
cinnamon and nutmeg
whipped cream, optional
Instructions:
Combine brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup and cook over medium heat until thickened, stirring constantly. Pour into 9 x 13 glass baking dish (spray with Pam first). Sprinkle with 1 cup chopped pecans. Place one layer sliced French bread on syrup and pecans (equals 6 slices). Top with sliced apples.
Combine eggs, milk, and vanilla in blender, then pour half and mixture over first layer. Place second layer of sliced French Bread on top of apples and cover with remaining egg and milk mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg and bake uncovered for 60-70 minutes at 350 degrees. Each person is served one double-layer serving. It can also be served with whipped cream.
This is my favorite way to have zucchini:
Trillian’s Zucchini and Potato soup
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 a large yellow onion, diced
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 carrot, diced
1 stalk of celery, diced
2 medium zucchini, diced
1 14-oz of diced tomatoes, with juices
3/4 cup of crushed tomatoes or marinara sauce
2 medium potatoes, diced
Salt and pepper to taste
Water/chicken stock to fill pot
Parsley to taste
Saute garlic and onions for a couple of minutes in a large saucepan. Add parsley, celery, carrots and zucchini and saute a couple of minutes longer. Add tomatoes and potatoes then fill pot with water or chicken stock. Add seasonings and bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium and simmer for 45 minutes.
I like to serve this with cooked tubetti or mini shells and top with lots of parmesan cheese.
This has not yet been seen on any shelf in the stores here. As it been tried by anyone and what do you think? The original spray and the olive oil spray are the ones most commonly used.
PAM COOKING SPRAY
http://www.pamcookingspray.com/
Coconut spray seems to be a fairly new one!
Rehashing the salad dressing.
Just remembered a special salad dressing which was long forgotten. It is more of a spread than a dressing but even eating it out of the jar with a spoon is justified. The name is BROCKLES. Delicious. Years ago Dallas had a restaurant (on East Grand Ave IIRC) and as children an young adults we would frequent the place. They had a house dressing which was, literally eaten with a spoon it was so good. Well, perhaps not a spoon exactly, but we did spread it on saltine crackers. They would be eaten just as fast as the salad itself. The dressing was sold in supermarkets for a few years. Then the eatery closed, the dressing disappeared off the shelves and fans in the area shed more than a few tears. This site found today and although have not yet tried their recipe, others seem to believe it comes very close to the original Brockles (may she rest in peace)
http://www.justapinch.com/recipes/sauce-spread/dressing/brockles-secret-special-dressing.html
VK
INGREDIENTS:
3 zucchini
1 pound pork sausage
3/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 (32 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup chopped basil leaves
pinch Italian seasoning
pinch of sage
1/3 cup red bell peppers
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Trim stems from zucchini and slice lengthwise.
Scoop out seeds and put in bowl. Mix seeds with sausage, garlic, bread crumbs, Italian seasoning, sage, peppers and parmesan cheese. Stuff squash with sausage mixture and place in 9x13 inch baking pan. Pour sauce over squash and cover pan with foil.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until sausage is cooked. Remove foil and cover with mozzarella cheese. Cook until cheese is melted
.................Hints / Options:
• The basic recipe is great for all sorts of adaptations. I've made it with a ground beef "stuffing", using taco spices and a salsa top, with cheddar and jack as the cheese topping. Another variation I've tried is with chopped chicken and mushrooms, and an alfredo sauce topping, and asiago/parmesan for the cheese topping.
• advice of others and precooked the meat, parboil zucchini OR precooked the zucchini in the microwave for 3 min (Just salt and pepper them and add a splash of olive oil to the hollowed-out zucchini)
• Decrease the amount of breadcrumbs some (original recipe was 1 cup) I also recommend adding roasted red peppers (chopped), fresh basil and sundried tomatoes (chopped) to the stuffing along with crushed red pepper flakes (about 1 tablespoon).
Living in the past. Still a novice to this particular system. Posted this to a thread of a few weeks ago so will once again post it ...this time to a current thread
As you are so fond of pickled anything, sharing this with you. Way back in 2004 there was once a site called Picklenet.com It can still be found with comments, recipes and ideas on where else LOL the Wayback Machine at Web Archive. A click below will take you directly to the Wayback Picklenet site for a month in the year of 2004. WARNING you might find some broken links or perhaps nothing at all as you work your way thru the years on each time the site was saved. Enjoy your read.
http://web.archive.org/web/20040714003634/http://www.picklenet.com/
The following URL you might wish to plug into the Wayback system just to see what might be found on it as well.
http://picklenet.com/sections/recipes.htm
Enjoy
VK
COOKBOOK WRITTEN BY SUPER COMPUTER
Article seen on Drudge
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/11533765/Fancy-a-tasty-byte-Cookbook-written-by-supercomputer.html