By By Lisa Tindell
There’s nothing quite like a summer dinner table filled with fresh peas, corn, okra and squash with a side of cornbread, tomatoes and maybe even a pork chop. My mouth is watering just thinking about that prospect.
Although I love all kinds of vegetables during the summer, one of my favorites is squash. I like it fried, stewed, in a casserole, as an ingredient in dressing, grilled, broiled with butter or just about any other way you could think of to prepare it. That’s why I’ve decided to throw out a few of my favorite squash recipes this week to help you come up with new ways to prepare this versatile vegetable.
This first recipe is one for a casserole that I got from some wonderful soul several years ago. I’m not sure who passed this one along to me, but it has to be one of the best squash casserole’s I’ve ever eaten.
Squash Casserole
1 1/2 pounds yellow crookneck squash – peeled, seeded, and sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
8 oz. sour cream
1 cup butter
7 1/2 ounces herbed dry bread stuffing mix
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook squash and onions in boiling salted water until tender. Drain and mash them with 1/2 cup butter or margarine. Stir in sour cream and cream of chicken soup. Set aside. Melt remaining 1/2 cup butter and stir it into the stuffing mix. Pour half of the stuffing mix into the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch glass baking pan. Pour the squash mixture over the top of the mixture, and the rest of the stuffing mix on top of the squash. Bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown and bubbly.
That’s the basic recipe and I have experimented a little with it from time to time. I have also added a small jar of cheese whiz to the squash mixture before pouring it into the dish. I have also topped the dish with shredded cheese and tossed on a few crispy, fried onion rings. This next recipe is from the Feeding the Flock cookbook produced by the House of Prayer ladies in Castleberry. Ruth Johnson sent in this recipe for something a little different with squash.
Squash Patties
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt and pepper
2 tbsp. finely chopped onion
1 cup cooked, mashed squash
1/2 cup self-rising flour
hot vegetable oil
Combine egg, sugar, salt, pepper, onion, squash and flour. Mix well. Drop mixture by tablespoons into 1/8-inch hot oil in large skillet. Flatten patties to 1/4-inch thickness. Cook to golden brown; turn and brown on other side.
I hope that the squash harvest is bountiful for you this year. Adding squash to your diet is good and good for you.
Until next week, happy cooking.
Lisa Tindell is news editor for the Brewton Standard. She can be reached via email at lisa.tindell@brewtonstandard.com