Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Nancy's Summer Squash

I got a bunch of Summer Squash from Nancy Price from work, so I decided to take advantage of her garden and make a couple vegetable dishes. And I think they turned out really, really well. All we had for dinner was vegetables and we were very satisfied. (well, I can only speak for myself, but Blake kept saying how good it was, and he usually doesn't like vegetables, so I think it's a good thing)

Vegetable Lasagna
3-4 summer squash (zucchini would be great, or yellow squash or whatever you have on hand) sliced thin
1/2 of an eggplant, peeled and sliced thin
1-1/2 C mozzarella or other white, soft cheese, grated
1/4 C Pecorino Romano cheese, grated

for the sauce:
1 can crushed tomatoes
1/2 large onion
4-5 cloves garlic, smashed and coarsely chopped
salt & pepper
1 t herbs de provence
olive oil

  1. slice squash and eggplant and set aside. Take eggplant and sprinkle with salt, layer in a colander and put a heavy, metal bowl on top. This releases all the bitter juices in the eggplant. Set aside.
  2. To cook the sauce, dice the onions fairly small. In a large sauce pan or skillet with high sides, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook until tender and slightly browned. Add garlic and continue to cook until fragrant and soft. Add tomatoes, and heat through. Add herbs and salt and pepper to taste. When the flavors are well incorporated, put in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
  3. Put about one cup of sauce on the bottom of the dish you will be baking it in (I used a pie pan this time). Place sliced squash on top, layering a little as you go around. Add more sauce to cover vegetables, and top with cheese. Layer eggplant on top (the same way) put sauce and cheese on top again. Add another layer of squash and do the same with the sauce and cheese.
  4. Cover with foil and bake in a 400 degree oven for about 45 minutes to an hour. When everything is cooked through and the sauce and cheese are bubbling, take off the foil, change the oven to "broil" and bake for a few more minutes until cheese is browned and bubbley. Take out of oven, cool a little, and serve.

Roasted Vegetables
2-3 Summer squash, sliced thin
3-4 tomatoes, sliced thin
1/2 of an eggplant, sliced thin
olive oil
salt and pepper
herbs de provence

  1. Coat the dish you're using with olive oil.
  2. Layer vegetable slices in a consistent order. (I did squash, eggplant, tomato, repeated over and over)
  3. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and herbs and drizzle some oilive oil on top.
  4. Cover with foil and bake in a 400 degree oven for 45 minutes to an hour, or until vegetables look tender. Let cool for a few minutes and serve.

2 comments:

Lisa Allen said...

Wow, those dishes look amazing. Did you put any olive oil on the veggies before you baked them? -Lisa

Unknown said...

wow! you are so creative to just come up with this stuff... your kids are going to be soooo lucky.