Squash | Cooking With Sharon Springfield

Vegetable Tian

2 tbsp olive oil (divided)
1 large sweet yellow onion cut in half and sliced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1-2 russet potatoes, unpeeled
1 zucchini
1 yellow squash
3 large Roma tomatoes
Sea salt, freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
Dried thyme, to taste
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat a baking dish with olive oil cooking spray. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the onions and saute until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another 60 seconds. Spread the onion mixture on the bottom of the greased baking dish.

Slice the potatoes, zucchini, squash and tomatoes in 1/4 inch thick slices. Layer them alternately in the dish on top of the onions, fitting them tightly into a spiral, making only one layer. Season with sea salt, black pepper and dried thyme, to taste. Drizzle the last tablespoon of olive oil over the top.

Cover the dish with tin foil and bake for 35 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Uncover and sprinkle the Parmesan cheese on top and bake for another 25-30 minutes or until browned.

Sharon Springfield

Vegetable Tian

Marinated Grilled Veggies are so easy to prepare and they make a great side dish. You can cut up your veggies up to a day ahead and let them marinate until you are ready to fire up the grill. We have a grill basket that we use to make these grilled veggies.

Ingredients:

2 zucchini squash
2 yellow squash
1 sweet onion
1 red bell pepper
1 package fresh mushrooms

Wash, rinse and dry the veggies. (I always use antibacterial soap and rinse well to remove any pesticides or other cooties.) Rinse the mushrooms in just water, removing all the dirt, and set on a towel to dry. Cut off the stems.

Prepare the marinade:

In a large ziplock bag, add 3 Tablespoons olive oil, 2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 teaspoon oregano, a dash of seasoned salt such as Everglades seasoning or Adobo seasoning. If you want to go the easy route, just use a balsamic vinagrette dressing, approx 1/4 cup.

Chop all the veggies up in bite sized pieces and add to the ziploc bag with the marinade. Seal the bag and toss the marinade over all the chopped veggies. If you are going to be cooking it right away, you can just leave it out on the counter while your grill heats. If you aren’t cooking them immediately, refrigerate until you are ready to cook.

Pre-heat your grill and the grill basket. Add approximately half of the marinated veggies to the basket. Stir to evenly distribute them in the basket. Close the grill lid and let them sizzzzzle away for a few minutes. Stir every couple minutes. When they are crisp-tender, they are done. Scoop them out of the basket into a serving bowl. Repeat with remaining marinated vegetables.

Serve as a side dish or make into a vegetarian dinner in a whole wheat wrap or on a bun.

We had ours with grilled fish and rice pilaf.