Patty Pan Squash Casserole

This recipe was one that just came together in an attempt to use up a bunch of large patty pan squash and tomatoes that I had from our garden. Somehow, we always seem to end up with overgrown squash- both zucchini and patty pan. My husband grew up eating small patty pan squash that were steamed or boiled and then browned butter was put over it. I never tasted this squash until we married and began our own garden. The first couple I picked were small, but ever since then, we often seem to end up with ones that are so big. I tried peeling them in the beginning- ever try peeling such an irregular piece of vegetable? Well, I quickly decided that this was for the birds. Really, you don't need to peel them because the squash is quite firm and needs a longer cooking time. Anyways, I was not very impressed with my first patty pan cooking attempt and decided I preferred it better mixed in with other foods- much like I prefer zucchini and yellow summer squash.

If you  notice from the next picture, I used some pre-made ingredients that I keep on hand to make up something quick when I have not had time to cook ahead. Feel free to substitute your own homemade versions, if desired.

Serves: approximately 4-6

Ingredients:

• meat of choice- poultry, beef, sausage or lamb (I used sausage)
• 1 large patty pan squash, washed and sliced through the center and seeds removed, or may use a few smaller ones (may also use zucchini or other summer squash)
• 1-2 medium onions, chopped
• 4-5 medium mushrooms, or to taste
• potatoes- mashed (I used some dried potato flakes made up with garlic seasoning and butter)
• 1 box of stuffing mix (cornbread or savory herb, if available), prepared according to directions
• 1 can of condensed cream of mushroom soup- may use own recipe if you prefer, but do not dilute it- you need it thick
• 1 cup of chopped tomatoes
• carrots/celery, chopped- optional
• chopped parsley- 1 Tbsp if fresh or 2 tsp if dry (more or less to taste)

Directions:

1. In a large oven-proof pan, brown the meat and vegetables except the tomatoes, adding some oil if the meat is not releasing enough to keep everything from sticking. Season with salt/pepper or seasoned salt and parsley.  If there is much grease, may remove most of it when finished browning everything.

2. Cover and allow to cook until the squash is fork-tender. Add in the tomatoes and stir in the mushroom soup (undiluted) and allow to cook, covered, for about 3 more minutes or until tomatoes begin to soften.

3. Spread the prepared stuffing over top of the mixture.

4. Place under preheated broiler at 375 or 400 degrees F. for about 5-10 minutes- watching carefully to make sure it does not burn. You just want it to be lightly browned.

5. Serve over prepared mashed potatoes.

Shared with the following:
Recipes For My Boys- Thursday's Treasures Wk 51

Zucchini Jam

This is a recipe that I have been dying to share for quite some time, but life has been a little too crazy to get it all together until now. My mom (who doesn't remember where this recipe came from) made this jam once or twice many years ago, and I have made it a few times since I married and started doing my own food preserving. I love how it is a great way to use up a pile of zucchini (especially those great big ones that inevitably seem to appear out of nowhere in the garden). I have noticed many cake recipes that hide and disguise zucchini, but I have not met anyone who has tried this before-- and it really has a nice flavor.  

For those of you who may wonder how on earth zucchini would taste in a sweet jam? Fear not! The zucchini is really just a subtle texture and is flavor-neutral. Therefore, you get the healthy benefits of eating zucchini but can enjoy it as a sweet topping. Actually, the predominant flavor is the pineapple and whatever flavor of jello you decide to use- I used peach jello flavor. *Note: if you use smaller zucchini, you may have a very solid and firm jam since larger zucchini have more water content. Also, for those people who are pretty picky, peeling the squash allows it to be disguised in the jam much better.

Yields: 5-6 half pints

Ingredients:

• 6 cups of zucchini, seeds removed, grated (may be peeled, although I did not)
• 4-6 cups sugar
• 6 oz. box of jello or (2) 3 oz. boxes- apricot, peach, pineapple or orange
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 cup crushed pineapple, drained

Directions:

• In a large pot, cook the zucchini on low-medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring often. No need to add additional water since the zucchini already has a high water content that seeps out as it cooks.
• Add sugar and boil for 6 minutes more, stirring often.
• Add lemon juice and pineapple and boil 6 minutes more, stirring often.
• Reduce heat and add package of jello. Stir well and pour into prepared jars.
• Cover with canning lids/rings and immediately invert jars for 20-30 minutes or process in water bath, if desired.

Shared with the following:
Weekend Potluck
Mop It Up Mondays

Apple Oatmeal Pancakes

Since my kids are crazy about pancakes and they usually expect me to make them once on the weekend, I have tried to find various ways to incorporate "healthy" foods into them. I love the texture that oats give to pancakes- it is not going to be your typical pancake. Instead, these pancakes tend to be denser and chewier, but they have a lot of flavor, as well as being very filling! I have often either grated apples or just chopped them in smaller chunks and added them to the batter, in addition to some apple pie spice. These are wonderful with some homemade cinnamon-flavored apple sauce and some maple syrup. You might also try making an apple syrup from apple juice/cider and a couple of tablespoons of honey that has been reduced down.

Both oats and apples are full of fiber and antioxidants. You know there is a lot of truth to the saying, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." These additions to your pancakes can take an average breakfast food that is usually not very healthy (especially if made with white flour and regular sugar and pancake syrups) and make it into something that is going to give us more energy, keep us full longer and yet taste yummy! If you really want to pump up the health benefits without really changing the taste, add in a few tablespoons of chia seeds or ground flax seed (both are high in omega-3 fatty acids and chia seeds are very high in antioxidants, yet flavor-neutral).

Makes about 20 larger pancakes.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups milk
• 1 1/2 cups quick or old-fashioned oats, uncooked (I use quick oats)
• 1 cup all purpose flour (I use white whole wheat flour, could also substitute coconut flour)
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon and 1/4-1/2 tsp cardamom or 2 tsp apple pie spice blend (optional if adding apples)
• 1/4 cup wheat germ
• 3 Tbsp sugar or other sweetener
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1-2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
• 1 large apple or 2 small-medium apples, chopped very small or grated (I leave the skins on)

Directions:

• Pour milk over oats, cover and let stand. 
• Meanwhile, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and spices. 
• Stir eggs, oil, vanilla into the oat/milk mixture.
• Add in the dry ingredients and wheat germ. Mix just until moistened.
• Fold in apples.
• Bake on moderately hot, lightly greased electric griddle (375 degrees) or pan fry until golden brown, turning only once when tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked.

May serve with the following sauce if not adding in fruit:

     Orange Sauce:

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp corn starch
• 2 cups orange juice
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup butter or coconut oil

Mix sugar and corn starch in a saucepan. Stir in juices. Cook until mixture is thick and clear. Boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Blend in butter/oil. Serve warm over pancakes.    

Makes about 3 cups.

Shared with the following:

Rhubarb Custard Cake

Our rhubarb has not grown very well this year. I kept holding off cutting it to see if the stalks would grow a little bigger. Now that the weather is getting hot,  I decided that I needed to cut the largest ones and leave the rest. This is an easy cake that was originally from "Taste of Home" by Evelyn Gebhardt, and I just love the way it turns out. It uses a cake mix, and if you don't like them, just substitute your favorite yellow/butter or white cake recipe. There is such a great balance between the sweet cake, the tartness of the rhubarb and the creaminess at the bottom.

Serves 12-15

Ingredients:

• 1 yellow cake mix (18 1/4 oz)
• 4 cups chopped fresh or frozen rhubarb
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup heavy or whipping cream
• whipped cream and fresh mint (optional) for topping

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Prepare cake batter according to package directions. Pour into greased 13x9 inch baking dish.
• Sprinkle with rhubarb and sugar.
• Slowly pour cream over top.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown. 
• Cool for 15 minutes before serving.
• Garnish with whipped cream and mint if desired.
• Refrigerate leftovers.

**Alternatively, you can increase the cream to 1 pint (2 cups) and bake it longer, about 1 1/4 hours. Follow the recipe the same as above otherwise. This gives a thicker custard layer. See picture below:

Shared with the following:

Blueberry Fantasia bars

This is a quick and yet decadent dessert that I found on the back of a Lucky Leaf Blueberry Pie Filling jar. I made it and brought it to my cooking club meeting recently and it was a big hit. I love any type of dessert that has a type of cheesecake layer. In addition, coconut has been one of my favorite things lately to work into recipes. So I was interested to try this recipe since it has coconut, nuts, pie filling and cheesecake. You can't go wrong with something like this! This recipe could also be switched up a little by using cherry or some other type of berry pie filling and use some other flavors in the cheesecake, like coconut. I added some lemon extract, which really added some brightness to the dessert.

Serves 12


Ingredients:

• 1 pkg (18 oz.) yellow cake mix
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 3 eggs
• 1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese
• 2 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
• 1 tsp lemon extract (or vanilla or coconut)
• 1 1/2 cup blueberry fruit filling (I used a whole can of filling)
• 3/4 cup flaked coconut
• 3/4 cup chopped nuts

Directions:

• In large bowl, blend cake mix, butter and 1 egg.
• Pat mixture into greased 9x13 inch baking pan.
• Beat cream cheese until fluffy; add in 2 eggs, flavoring and sugar. Pour over cake mixture.
• Spoon fruit filling on top evenly. Sprinkle  with coconut and nuts.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes until lightly browned. (Cheesecake layer should not be too wet/jiggly when testing it.)
• Cool/refrigerate for about 30-45 minutes before cutting.

*Note: the cheesecake layer may be a little soft. You may need to clean the knife after each cut so the cheesecake does not smear all over the other parts. (That's just more for you to taste!)

I also wanted to share that I was one of the bloggers given the Versatile Blogger award by Susie at Earning-My-Cape a few weeks ago (maybe even a little longer- time has been flying by lately). Although I am unable to fulfill all the requirements in accepting that award at this time, I wanted to give her a big THANKYOU!!!! and a tell everyone to check out her blog and show her some blog love. She is just getting started in the blogging world and shares quite a variety of things that she is working on- from various crafts to cooking to information that is useful for our health and families, and basically whatever is happening with her family at that time (like a lot of us do). She is really another sweet person that I have had the privilege to meet since I started blogging. 

Shared with the following:


Friday Flair Link Party #19 at Whipperberry

Sugar Cake

mixed lilacs

tulips

azalea

daffodils

helleborus

Valley Valentine Japonica

apple blossoms

 

Spring is such a beautiful time of year, and I just had to share some of the flowers in bloom at our house. Right now, I picked some lilacs and the scent is perfuming our entire house. Growing up, there were lilacs around our house, and later the house my husband and I bought had a large number of old lilac bushes of various colors throughout the entire property. I must say, they are one of my favorite flowers. We have since removed some of them to open up some areas and clean up the yard some (still very much a work in progress). Our small home orchard was also beautiful this spring in full bloom. I hope this translates into a good fruit crop.

I know that in some parts of the U.S. it is rhubarb season, but ours is not quite ready. We were finally able to harvest a nice supply last spring/early summer. In our area, there is actually a rhubarb festival that features this tart plant in many different ways. I had posted a recipe for rhubarb dessert sauce previously and thought I would share this old fashioned cake recipe that goes so well with the rhubarb sauce.

rhubarb

This is a  cake that was made for our family by a good friend when my last baby was born. She made some wonderful soups that we could heat up and eat when we needed quick meals, and she also made this cake for dessert to go with some rhubarb sauce she had made. Her mother-in-law used to make this recipe for many years, and my friend remembers her making it to take with them when they went camping. They often ate it for breakfast with applesauce, but it is also a simple cake that goes well with ice cream and just about any other type of dessert sauces or toppings.

I had to look around for a while to find the right kind of sugar to use on the top so that it would not dissolve into the cake during the baking process. You should use some type of specialty sugar that is larger granules and may be called gourmet sugar or coating sugar. I noticed this sugar has wax added, which I believe helps keep it more solid. When I made these cakes, my daughter saw I had bought some pink coating sugar and so she wanted "her" cake to have the colored sugar. The other cake was coated with the gourmet sugar that was white and larger granules. It seemed to sink into the top of the cake batter slightly more than the coating sugar, which surprised me, but it made a lovely glittery, crunchy top layer on top of the cake. If you cannot find this type of sugar, you can still use the regular granulated sugar- it will just dissolve somewhat into the top of the cake as it bakes.

 I really enjoy this cake because of the moist, tender crumb with the crunchy top. The original recipe called for it to be baked in 3 pie plates, but I decided to use two 9 inch cake pans. I just had to adjust the baking time approximately 10-15 minutes longer. My friend has also made the cakes in a couple smaller oblong cake pans with good results.


Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup shortening (I used olive oil)
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk or sour milk
• 1 tsp vanilla (I used about 1 1/2 or 2 tsp)
• 3 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cream of tartar

Directions:

• Cream shortening or oil with sugar. 
• Beat eggs and add to sugar and oil.
• Add sour milk and vanilla.
• Sift dry ingredients and add to wet ingredients in batches while mixing.
• Divide into 3 greased pie pans (I used two greased 9 inch round cake pans). 
• Sprinkle top with additional granulated sugar.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes for pie plates or about 30-35 minutes if using cake pans (check frequently and test with toothpick in the center when it appears golden brown on top).
• Cool on rack for about 20 minutes and then may serve with toppings of choice if desired.

One cake could be wrapped in plastic and frozen to be eaten later.

Pasta with Potato and Brussel Sprouts

In my family growing up, I ate spaghetti but always just with tomato meat sauce. It has only been in the last few years that I have tried making pasta dishes with different types of sauces. When I saw Rachael Ray make a lightened up version of  Pizzoccheri, I was very interested to see how the Italians combine potatoes and pasta together- I never would have thought of this before. I have made a number of changes to Rachael's recipe. In Rachael's recipe, she cored the brussel sprouts and opened up the sprouts into individual leaves, as well as used some toasted bread crumbs for garnish. Since I had a lot of brussel sprouts to use and I did not feel like coring them, I simply cut them in half. I collected the extra leaves that came off the sprouts and added to the cooking water about 1 minute before the end of cooking. I also omitted the toasted buttered bread crumbs, but these would also be wonderful as a garnish. This dish was also originally a meatless dish but I recently decided to add in sausage- it is delicious both ways.  I also made it one time with sliced cabbage instead of the brussel sprouts- actually would be good with both cabbage and brussel sprouts. This dish is definitely one of my family's favorites lately.


Serves about 6


Ingredients:

• 3-4 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced into planks
• 15 brussel sprouts, sliced in half, larger ones quartered
• 1 large onion
• 1/2 pound sausage
• 3 large cloves garlic, pressed or finely minced
• 1/2 tsp ground sage or 10-12 fresh sage leaves
• 1-2 Tbsp butter 
• 1 Tbsp dried parsley or 3 Tbsp chopped fresh Italian parsley
• seasoned salt to taste/pepper
• 1/2 pound pasta (I used thin spaghetti)
• reserved pasta cooking water
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup whole milk, half and half or cream (may also use evaporated milk)
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
• shredded mozzarella cheese for garnish 
• toasted bread crumbs mixed with parmesan cheese for garnish
• chopped parsley for garnish

Directions:

• Boil sliced potatoes and brussel sprouts together in a large pot of salted water for about 5-7 minutes or until potatoes are just beginning to become tender. Be careful not to cook too long or they will fall apart and be mushy. Then remove the potatoes and brussel sprouts and  drizzle a little olive oil and mix gently. Leave the cooking water in the pot to cook the pasta later.
• In a large skillet, brown the sausage and onion until the onion is translucent. Then stir in the garlic and cook for about 2 minutes. If there is a lot of fat, remove most of it from the pan. 
• Stir in the butter, parsley, sage and salt/pepper and simmer for another couple minutes. 
• Meanwhile, start the potato water boiling in the large pot and cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. 
• When finished, drain off the pasta water and reserve it. Mix the pasta in with the meat mixture.
• Add in the milk/cream and parmesan cheese and then add enough pasta water to make a sauce- it will thicken gradually. You may need to add some more water later to loosen it up more. Warm through for about 5 more minutes on medium heat, stirring regularly.
• Then add in the potato/brussel sprouts and gently mix in the pasta. Garnish with more parmesan or mozzarella cheese, bread crumbs (if desired) and chopped parsley.

This dish was shared with the following:
     Weekend Potluck #15

Squash Dal Curry

One of my favorite cuisines is Indian food because of the rich flavors that are combined into amazing dishes. I don't think I really even ate much Indian food before I was married but tried it while visiting larger cities with my husband, as well as a nearby Indian restaurant that we have grown to love. However, what I have realized in the process of learning how to cook this food is that there are many different types/styles of Indian food, depending on the region you are cooking from, as well as the fact that Indian restaurant food is quite different from what most Indian people eat in their homes everyday. I have bought a couple good Indian cookbooks that I have studied and tried to learn from and now have accumulated quite a few spices/herbs that are often used in their cooking. However, with just a small investment in about 5 spices (some you may already have), you can make some very tasty Indian dishes. I like the fact that, while much of the Indian food is spicy hot, when you make it at home, you can omit or temper down the heat to your liking and yet still enjoy the wonderful flavors. In addition, although Indian restaurant food is quite expensive, you can make many dishes very cheaply at home. Since I have been trying to cook more dishes with beans for my family, I often like using Indian recipes because they take the lowly bean from oh-hum to oh-yum!

this is the masala dabba I bought to hold some of the spices I frequently use- includes tumeric (outer left and continuing clockwise), cardamom, fennel seed, black mustard seed, ground ancho chili powder, cumin seed and black salt (center)

This recipe I share here was inspired by a Green Pumpkin Curry recipe that I have enjoyed making quite a few times. A few years ago, I picked up a small, thick cookbook at a local craft store titled Greatest Ever Indian for about $5. While I have not made many of the recipes in the book, there are a lot of nice pictures illustrating the steps and many of them are simple dishes with a variety of ingredients and ranging from sides to main dishes to breads, appetizers and desserts. When making this recipe, I never saw or found green pumpkin but it said I could substitute ordinary pumpkin. So I also figured that since butternut squash is in the pumpkin family, then that should also work well. This most recent time I made this, I decided to add in some dal I had- I believe it is moong dal, which is very quick cooking and mild in flavor, as well as some extra cooking liquid. You can omit the beans, if desired and reduce the cooking liquid, or substitute some red lentils. This dish comes together pretty quickly- in about 30 minutes, and is very rich in antioxidants from not only the spices but also the squash and beans. 

moong dal

Ingredients:

• 2-3 Tbsp oil
• 1 large onions, sliced
• 1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds (may substitute 1/2 tsp ground cumin if you don't have seeds)
• 1/2 - 3/4 tsp black mustard seed (optional)
• 1 1/2 - 2 pounds butternut squash (1 large), peeled, deseeded and cubed
• 1 tsp amchur/amchoor- dried mango powder (optional, but adds a nice flavor)
• 1 1/2 tsp mild curry powder
• 1 tsp tumeric 
• 1/2 tsp black salt (optional- may use adobo seasoned salt or other salt)
• 1/2 tsp chili powder (not the chili powder blend)- (optional)
• 1 1/2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger * (may substitute 1 tsp dried ginger- not quite as good)
• 2 large garlic cloves, crushed/made into paste
• 3 1/2 cups chicken broth- or may use vegetable broth or salted water
• 1 cup moong dal (or split lentils), sorted and rinsed
• 10 dried apricots, chopped
• 1 Tbsp dried fenugreek leaves (optional)

Directions:

• Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onions, cumin seeds, black mustard seeds and curry powder, stirring occasionally, until a light golden brown color.
• Add the cubed squash or pumpkin to the skillet and stir-fry for 3-5 minutes over low heat.
• Mix in the amchur powder, tumeric, salt, chili powder, ginger and garlic cloves together in a small bowl. 
• Add the spice mixture to the squash  mixture, stirring well to mix.
• Add the broth or water, rinsed moong dal or lentils, apricots and fenugreek, then cover and cook over low heat for about 20 minutes or until beans are soft and slightly creamy, stirring occasionally. 

Serve warm with rice, warm naan or paratha (chapati) bread.

*ginger is easy to keep on hand ready to use if you peel it/chop into large chunks after bringing it home from the store, place it in a plastic bag in the freezer. Then when you need it, simply remove a piece or two and either grate it or thinly slice/chop it. It is actually easier to work with when it is slightly frozen. This will keep for a long time in the freezer. It is great in chicken soups, with bean dishes, smoothies with coconut milk, etc.

This was shared with the following:

I Should Be Mopping The Floor: Mop It Up Mondays #11
The Sweet Spot: Recipe Party
Simple Lives Thursday, #91- A Little Bit Of Spain In Iowa
Weekend Potluck #13
Financial Friday + Fabulous Features
Country Momma Cooks: Link and Greet #14
Taylor House Thursday #3
Miz Helen's Country Cottage: Full Plate Thursday 4-12-12
Six Sisters' Stuff: Strut Your Stuff Saturday Link Party-Week 40