# Summer Squash Casserole



## Kayelle (Aug 12, 2017)

Here's a favorite easy recipe for a summer side dish. We had it tonight with our grilled chicken, so thought I'd share. 
It would make a wonderful vegetarian main dish.
It's so tasty!!!


                                         4 cups sliced summer squash, any combo, sliced in 1/2 in cubes.
                                         1/2 cup fine chopped onion
                                         35 Ritz crackers, crushed
                                         1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
                                         2 eggs, beaten
 

                                             3/4 cup milk
                                             1/4 cup butter, melted
                                             1 teaspoon salt
                                             ground black pepper to taste
                                             2 tablespoons butter
In a buttered 9x13 pan, combine squash and onion. In a baggie, crush the crackers and combine with the grated cheese. Mix the eggs with the milk, melted butter, S&P. Pour over the squash and mix in 1/2 the cracker/cheese mix. Top the whole thing with remaining cracker/cheese mix and dot with butter. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes till golden and bubbling.


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## buckytom (Aug 13, 2017)

And I just passed up the organic zukes and yellow squash at farm stands on the way home from the Delaware shore thinking I had no inspiration for it.

I'm glad I should be able to get something local, tho.

Thanks, K-l.


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## Kayelle (Aug 13, 2017)

I'm glad to have inspired you Bucky...it really is such a tasty dish. I know you'll like it.


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## CraigC (Aug 13, 2017)

I make something similar with mandolin sliced rounds (Karen actually does the slicing, I always seem to get bit). No cheese, but I might just give that a whirl. Now you have me hashing (no Bucky, not that kind) a spiralized casserole around in my mind.


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## medtran49 (Aug 13, 2017)

Haven't  told Craig yet, but spiralized would be too thin.  His brother loved the squash casserole and I  made it for him once when I was taking care of him slicing the squash by hand, as he didn't have a mandolin. Found a hand held one and used it to make another 1 later on, but it wasn't  adjustable so slices were paper thin.  Don't know why, but that changed the taste and it wasn't  nearly as good.  Slices have to at least be 1/4 inch thick.


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## Cheryl J (Aug 13, 2017)

This sounds delicious, Kay!  I love gratin dishes...will have to grab some of those lovely summer squash this week when I go to the market.  Copied and saved.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Aug 13, 2017)

Now I know what to do with the monster yellow squash I found in the garden.


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## Cooking Goddess (Sep 1, 2020)

*Kayelle*, I made this tonight and it was really tasty! However, it seemed somewhat dry. Your directions say to cook "till bubbling". I didn't have enough moisture in the casserole for anything to bubble. Could it be because I scrapped the seeds out of the squash? Usually the ones I buy at the store are pretty seedy and have lots of moisture in the seed cavity. I bought these at the little grocery store that carries lots of local produce during growing season Hence, these were a better, meatier squash. No matter how I messed it up, we enjoyed it. Himself said he likes it much better than when I just saute the discs. I reminded him that since I am the one doing ALL the work cooking and cleaning up I'll make the easy one if I want. 

We've got lots left over from this recipe. I suppose it wouldn't take quite so long if I made only half a recipe...


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## Kayelle (Sep 2, 2020)

Cooking Goddess said:


> *Kayelle*, I made this tonight and it was really tasty! *However, it seemed somewhat dry. *Your directions say to cook "till bubbling". I didn't have enough moisture in the casserole for anything to bubble. Could it be because I scrapped the seeds out of the squash? Usually the ones I buy at the store are pretty seedy and have lots of moisture in the seed cavity. I bought these at the little grocery store that carries lots of local produce during growing season Hence, these were a better, meatier squash. No matter how I messed it up, we enjoyed it. Himself said he likes it much better than when I just saute the discs. I reminded him that since I am the one doing ALL the work cooking and cleaning up I'll make the easy one if I want.
> 
> We've got lots left over from this recipe. I suppose it wouldn't take quite so long if I made only half a recipe...




 Mine has never turned out "dry" CG. I suspect you had that dry result because you removed most the the moisture from the squash by scraping out the insides. 
I should have gone further with the directions "till golden and it bubbles at the edges".
Although it makes a big pan, as a side it goes with so many main dishes, I've always used it up with nearly everything. For that reason, I wouldn't make a half recipe. I have no idea if it would freeze well.


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## Cooking Goddess (Sep 3, 2020)

Kayelle said:


> Mine has never turned out "dry" CG. I suspect you had that dry result because you removed most the the moisture from the squash by scraping out the insides.


Honestly, *Kayelle*, the seeds were so few and tiny they really wouldn't have added much moisture. You know how the neck on most butternut squash is solid? That's almost how these zuccs and yellow squash looked. I've never seen such meaty summer squash.



Kayelle said:


> I should have gone further with the directions "till golden and it bubbles at the edges".


Yeah...nothing by the edges except chunks of squash. No real liquid. I actually thought of mixing up another egg with another 1/4 cup of milk, but I was afraid the outcome would be too much custard/less filling.



Kayelle said:


> Although it makes a big pan, as a side it goes with so many main dishes, I've always used it up with nearly everything. For that reason, I wouldn't make a half recipe. I have no idea if it would freeze well.


It sure can go with most any other main food. It is versatile. It's just that today would be Day Three of eating it. Neither Himself nor I wanted a third day of squash casserole. The full recipe looks like more than eight servings between the two of us. You know the expression "too much of a good thing"? A full recipe, for us, is too much...


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## Kayelle (Sep 4, 2020)

Hey, I play around with recipes all the time so your ideas might be good for you CG.
We like it the way it is, but that's just us. I wouldn't want it to be "custard like" but just enough to hold it together somewhat. Maybe the addition of 1/4 cup mayo would do the trick for you?


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## dragnlaw (Sep 4, 2020)

*CG* - perhaps you could adjust everything for an *8x8* pan.  

I'm going to give it a try for some of my monsters. I'm even thinking of throwing some of the monster cucumber in.  That would definitely have some moisture for you!


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