Zucchini Au Gratin

Guess what!  We had zucchini for dinner!  I know that you are shocked!  By the time summer is over, I am going to be a zucchini expert.  My husband told me to just pull up the plants, but I refused.  That is for quitters and I'm no quitter!  I am going to keep cooking zucchini until my plants aren't producing anymore.  I'm sure my family will be THRILLED !  Seriously though?  I have found SO many zucchini recipes that I really do just love. Zucchini is such a versatile vegetable!  I am so glad that I tried my hand at growing it this summer.  I will be planting it again, just maybe not 7 plants;P  Anyway, this Zucchini Au Gratin really was fantastic, give it a try.  

Zucchini Au Gratin

3 Tbsp. butter

1/3 c. fresh, minced onion

2 zucchini (about 1 lb.), sliced 1/4 inch thick

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1/8 tsp. nutmeg 

1 Tbsp. flour

1/2 c. milk

3/4 c. Club crackers, crushed

3/4 c. sharp cheddar, shredded

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Melt butter in a medium skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and zucchini and cook for 10 minutes, covered.    

Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg; mix in.  Stir in the flour.  Add the milk and cook on low, stirring, until a sauce if formed.  

Pour into an 8x8 baking dish that has been sprayed with nonstick spray.  Combine the crackers and the cheese, then sprinkle on top of zucchini mixture.  

Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown.   

Source: Adapted from Beth's Favorite Recipes

Sherried Tomato Soup

Oh happy day!  I have once again found a new recipe that all 3 of my children really enjoyed!  This made a pretty large pot of soup, enough for me and all 3 kids to eat it for lunch the next day.  Guess what?  No one complained about having to eat it again!  They actually WANTED to have it!  That tells me this is certainly a keeper.  It is such a quick recipe to make too.  I foresee us having this on many busy nights during the cold winter:)

Here are the ingredients that you will need:

Sherried Tomato Soup

6 Tbsp. butter

1 whole medium onion, diced

46 oz. tomato juice

2-14 oz. cans diced tomatoes

1-3 Tbsp. chicken base (I used 2)

3-6 Tbsp. sugar (I went with 4 1/2)

1 pinch salt

black pepper, to taste

1 c. cooking Sherry

1 1/2 c. heavy cream

Chopped Fresh Parsley, to taste (I left out since I didn't have any)

Chopped Fresh Basil, to taste

Saute diced onions in butter until translucent.  Then add canned tomatoes, tomato juice, chicken base, sugar, salt, and pepper and stir.  Bring to a near boil, then turn off heat.  Add in sherry and cream and stir.  Add in parsley and basil to taste.  

Adjust other seasonings if needed.  Delicious served with crusty garlic bread, or a grilled cheese.  

Source: PW

Italian Zucchini Bake

True to my word, here I am with another zucchini recipe.  I still have a counter-full, so I am guessing I will be back again with even more.  I do think that I am going to try shredding and freezing some zucchini, I have heard that has worked for many people.  I made this one last week, and it was very good.  I do believe it is my new favorite zucchini recipe (at least main course-wise!)  I made this for dinner, but I also think it would be a delicious served at breakfast.

Here are the ingredients that you will need:  I know a visual always helps me, so I thought I would try to start doing that on here.

Italian Zucchini Bake

4 c. Zucchini

1 c. Onion

2 Tbsp. Butter

2 Tbsp. Parsley Flakes

1/2 tsp. Salt

1/2 tsp. Freshly Ground Black Pepper

1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder

1/2 tsp. Basil

1/2 tsp. Oregano

3 Eggs

8 oz. Mozzarella or Italian Blend Cheese, shredded

1 1/2 lb. Italian Sausage, browned & drained

1 package Refrigerated Crescent Roll Dough (I use reduced fat)

2 tsp. Dijon Mustard

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  

Thinly slice zucchini, leaving peel on.  Dice onion.  In a large skillet, melt butter.  Add zucchini and onion.  Cook until tender, about 10 minutes.  Stir in parsley and other seasonings.  

In a large bowl, beat eggs.  Blend in cheese.  Stir in veggie mixture.  Add well drained, browned sausage to this mixture.  

Spread crescent roll dough out evenly in an ungreased 9 x 13 baking dish.  Press seems together, making a crust.  Spread mustard evenly on crust (basting brush works great for this).  Add vegetable mixture to the top of the unbaked crust. 

Bake 30 minutes, or until knife inserted near center comes out clean.  Let stand 5-10 minutes before serving.

Source: Tasty Kitchen    

Menu Plan Monday

Well, we are back from the family canning party (known as Pickle Palooza this year) with TONS of canned goods.  The family canned 360 quarts of dill pickles & 60ish pints of bread & butter pickles.  Other family members brought some of their own veggies that we also canned.  This year, that included beets from our garden (we did pickled as well as regular veggie beets), tomatoes, and roasted red peppers.

Me pickle packing!  Other canning stations include: Washy Washers, Nibber Nubbers (cut off ends), Briners, Steamed Steamers, as well as the jar preparation station.  I can't remember the exact names for a few, but there are visors stating job title for everyone;P

There were about 30 people there for the canning weekend spanning Thursday evening/Friday morning until Sunday morning when everyone began leaving.  My in-laws hosted at their house out in the woods this year where some slept in tents outside and others all throughout the house.  They have a perfect location for it though and no one felt too packed in.  I can't wait for next year!  It is such a fun way to have a family reunion!

Here is what I brought home with me from the canning weekend!

Monday: Cathy's Sherried Tomato Soup & Tomato & Basil Grilled Cheese

Tuesday: Big Daddy's Dirty Rice

Wednesday: Oven-Ham Sammies & Salad

Thursday: Shrimp Pasta in a Foil Package & Green Beans

Friday: Taco Night

Saturday: Tangy Sirloin Strips & Zucchini Au Gratin

Sunday: Butter Chicken over Steamed Rice & Roasted Broccoli

I will also be making lots of things with these I would imagine....

Mini-Mac Sliders

Thought I'd get one more post up quickly while I am baking some yummy zucchini bread up.  I hadn't been out to my garden much lately and you would not BELIEVE the number of zucchini that I picked out there last night.  Some of them are HUGE!  Not sure if they are still very good that big?  We shall see because I decided to seed and peel one of the larger ones and try using it in a bread.  I'm thinking maybe the larger ones would be OK for baking?  I'm learning.  I obviously don't know much since I am the person that planted SEVEN zucchini plants.  I'm sure I will have many more zucchini recipes to share soon;P

I made these Mini-Mac Sliders last night and I LOVED them.  Now, I'm not a big fan of McDonald's, but these were so much better.  My kids really enjoyed them too, sliders are always just perfect for small hands to hold and manage.  My oldest skipped the Secret Sauce, but I guess I expected that since he isn't big on any type of sauce aside from ketchup on his burger.

Here is what you will need to recreate the McDonald's Special Sauce:

Special Sauce:

1/2 c. Mayo

2 Tbsp. Creamy French Dressing

3 Tbsp. Sweet Pickle Relish

1 1/2 Tbsp. finely minced onion

1 tsp. white Vinegar

1 tsp. granulated Sugar

1/8 tsp. kosher salt (as you can see, I messed up and used regular)

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate until ready to use!

Here is what you will need to complete the burgers:

Mini-Mac Sliders

1 1/2 lb. Ground Chuck

2-3 Green Onions, sliced thin, then roughly chopped

1 Tbsp. Olive Oil

1 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. kosher salt

Iceberg lettuce cut into super-thin strips (about 1 c.)

Pickle Slices

6 Colby Jack cheese slices

12 Slider Buns (I couldn't find them so I used dinner rolls which worked perfectly)

Combine the ground check with the green onions, olive oil, black pepper, and kosher salt.  Mix by hand until just combined and, then form 12 mini burgers- make an indentation in the center of each burger to prevent them from becoming much thicker in the middle than in the rest of the burger.  Little tip from Bobby Flay;) 

Place on a preheated grill pan (I used my regular outdoor grill) over medium high heat.  Cook 3-5 minutes per side or until cooked through.  Flip and repeat.  

Toast buns if desired (I do, I just can't live without toasted buns).  Top bottom bun with a slider, cheese, pickle, lettuce, sauce, and then top bun.  

Enjoy!

Source: Simply Scratch

Banana Crumb Muffins

I think I have finally found another winning banana recipe.  Yes, there are so many out there, but just not many can come close to our love of this banana bread recipe.  These muffins are heavenly.  My only complaint is that I think I will need to do a double batch next time because these only lasted a few hours here.

Banana Crumb Muffins

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

3 bananas, mashed

3/4 c. granulated sugar

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 tsp. vanilla

1/3 c. butter, melted

1/3 c. packed brown sugar

2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 Tbsp. butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Lightly spray 10 nonstick muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray, or line with paper muffin cups.

In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 c. flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.  In another bowl, beat together bananas, granulated sugar, egg, vanilla, and melted butter.  Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened.  Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.  

In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, 2 Tbsp. flour, and cinnamon.  Cut in 1 Tbsp. butter until  mixture resembles coarse cornmeal.  Sprinkle topping over muffins.

Bake in a preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.  

Adapted from: Allrecipes

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

LOVE.  That is what I am with this pasta dish.  IN LOVE.  Totally, completely.  I could eat this every day.  It is simple and beautiful.  I'm not the only only that loved it.  My entire family also did.  As a matter of fact, we pretty much put the entire pot away in one sitting.  Give it a try.  You will thank me.  If you do, please try to use the pancetta, it does beautiful things in your mouth.  Thank you.

Here is what you will need to create heaven in your mouth:
:

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

1 lb. Spaghetti

2 Tbsp. Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

4 oz. Pancetta, cut into small pieces (you can also use bacon, it will be good, just not QUITE as good;)

4 whole large garlic cloves, minced

2 whole large eggs

1 1/2 c. freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese, divided

Kosher Salt

Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

Fresh Parsley for garnish, optional

In a large pasta pot, add enough water to cook your pasta.  Salt your water generously.  Once water comes to a boil, add spaghetti and stir so that the pasta separates.  Cook for 8-10 minutes or until al dente.

WHILE the spaghetti is cooking, in a large pan over medium heat, add olive oil and cook pancetta until fairly crisp (3-4 minutes).  Add garlic and cook for another minute (you don't want your garlic to burn).  While these are cooking, crack your eggs into a small bowl and add 1 c. of your cheese.  Stir together and set aside.

Take a ladle of the spaghetti water and set aside.  Drain your pasta well and add to bacon mixture.  It is IMPORTANT that your pasta is hot when adding it to the mixture.  Toss well (I find that tongs work well for this).  Take off of heat.  Add in your cheese and egg mixture and toss well.  If you find the mixture is too thick, you can thin it out with a little pasta water (remember you can always add more but you can't take away so add sparingly).  Season well with pepper.

Garnish with the remainder of the cheese and fresh parsley if you like.  This dish is best eaten immediately. 

Source: bell'alimento

Nutritional Info

• Servings Per Recipe: 6
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 540.1

• Total Fat: 21.8 g
• Cholesterol: 85.6 mg
• Sodium: 235.7 mg
• Total Carbs: 59.3 g
• Dietary Fiber: 1.9 g
• Protein: 26.6 g