We at GMS love having a CSA, because it brings fruits and veggies right to your door without you having to think about it. However, sometimes you get a bunch of something you don’t love, or you didn’t think would be so…well…abundant. This is how I ended up with three zucchini with no plan in place. I like zucchini if it’s presented to me, but it’s not my favorite thing to have to figure out what to do with.
Enter this recipe for Summer Squash Gratin. Now, we followed this recipe, but we didn’t want to put the zucchini and squash into the microwave – what a waste of nutrients! But it is a good idea to salt the squash and zucchini and let the salt draw the water out – so here’s a handy video with advice on how to do that without MAJORLY oversalting your casserole!
Summer Squash Gratin
Adapted from Cook’s Country
Oven temperature: 450 degrees
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus 4 tablespoons melted
2 onions, halved and sliced thin
Salt and pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon rosemary, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 pounds zucchini, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 1/2 pounds yellow summer squash, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs
2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated
Directions:
1. Melt 1 tablespoon softened butter in a cast iron over medium heat. Add onions and salt and pepper, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and golden brown.
2. Stir in garlic and rosemary and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in wine and cook until evaporated, about 3 minutes. Meanwhile, draw water out of squash/zucchini. You can do this by salting the squash and zucchini and microwaving, or by letting sit in one layer, salted, on the counter.
4. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Grease bottom and sides of 13 by 9-inch baking dish with remaining 1 tablespoon softened butter. Combine panko, Parmesan, and 1 teaspoon pepper in bowl. Evenly coat baking dish with 6 tablespoons panko mixture. Stir melted butter into remaining panko mixture until well combined; set aside.
5. Arrange half of squash in prepared dish and season with pepper to taste. Sprinkle ¼ cup panko mixture evenly over squash. Spread onion mixture in even layer over crumbs. Arrange remaining half of squash over onion mixture and season with pepper to taste. Cover with aluminum foil and bake until just tender, about 15 minutes.
6. Remove dish from oven. Sprinkle remaining panko mixture evenly over top. Bake, uncovered, until bubbling around edges and crumbs are golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes. Serve.
Despite the fact that we over-salted ours, this was DELICIOUS. We highly recommend (as always) using rosemary, as it is such a great flavor with the crunch of the panko and the fresh taste of the squash!
What do you do with all those zucchini??
[addtoany] Yum