Is it me, or are casseroles not a photogenic food? Please bear with me as I was making this later and the day and I was chasing light like no ones business. BUT this is too good of a recipe not to share.

This is a recipe of my grandmother’s and I remember the first time I had it and thinking…. where has this been all my life. Like I had said in a previous post, I am a comfort food cook. I absolutely love it, and casseroles are where it’s at. Before we know it, Fall will be here and the summer produce will be slowly coming to an end here in Michigan. But that’s ok!! Join me in making casseroles in the late summer with summer produce.

Michigan Ingredients: Zucchini and farm fresh eggs

Look at that monster of a Zucchini. When it comes to that size of Zucchini (large), I usually use it more for baking as opposed to cooking because sometimes when a Zucchini gets too big, it can become bitter. If you carve out the seedy section of the Zucchini (the middle), the bitterness goes away. SOOOOOO……

Note that I was looking at the Zucchini after I took the above picture and realized that it just seemed like it would be bitter. So imagine that I took the “after”photo of the rounds with a hole in the middle.

Chop your onion while your beef is browning. Set them aside for after you drain (and rinse) your browned beef. Saute your onions until translucent and add your beef back into the pan. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Now of course, you will want to have rice that is already cooked. I usually cook the rice earlier in the day because juggling cooking the rice, chopping veggies, steaming veggies, browning meat can become a bit much.  So word of advice, cook your rice earlier in the day.

Funny story… I was going to try and make this “quick” meal (and it’s fairly quick);  however, when you look in the cupboard and do not have cream of chicken soup like you thought (and you have lots of cream of celery soup for the other version of Zucchini casserole)… you improvise and make cream of chicken soup from scratch. Most households (or maybe just mine because I am a prepper a good pantry stocker) have the items necessary to make cream of chicken soup from scratch.  Milk, flour, chicken broth, garlic powder, onion powder, and pepper.  I did not take the photos for this portion because I was panicking quickly thinking on my feet as to what to do about a missing ingredient. Thank goodness for Google.

Bring a pot of water to a rapid boil and add your Zucchini. Steam/boil the Zucchini for 5-7 minutes and drain. Note that the middles are missing….   I did chop the Zucchini into smaller pieces because the rings are HUGE and should be more “bite” size.

Combine beef/onion mixture, rice, cream of chicken soup, eggs, zucchini, and sour cream. (Yes… I snuck that in there. As I stated earlier, I was doing this as a rush because it was last minute and wanted you lovely people to have this AMAZING recipe. You’re welcome). Pour contents into a 9×13 pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.

Top the casserole with cheese. I would recommend using either sharp or extra sharp cheese. I know, I know, this recipe keeps getting better.  Bake at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

There you have it! A casserole that is healthy and satisfying. Serve this amazing dish with muffins or Zucchini bread.

Zucchini Casserole with Beef

 

Author:

Michigan from Scratch

Recipe type: Dinner

Cuisine: Casserole

Serves: 4-6

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Total time: 40 mins

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A delicious and healthy casserole that has all the goodness of summer; yet will help you transition to fall.

Ingredients

• 1 pound of Zucchini
• 1 Medium Onion diced
• 1 pound of Ground Beef
• 2 Eggs
• 1 can of Cream of Chicken Soup*
• ½ cup Sour Cream
• 2 cups cooked Rice**
• 1 cup Shredded Cheese (Sharp or Extra Sharp)
• Salt and Pepper to taste.

Instructions

1. Chop your zucchini into rounds (about ¼ inch thickness). Dice your onion, set aside.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook Zucchini for 5 minutes and drain. Set aside.
3. Brown your ground beef, drain and rinse the fat. Saute your onion until onion is translucent and add your beef back to the pan. Salt and pepper beef and onion mixture.
4. Combine your cooked rice, cream of chicken soup, beef and onion, eggs, and zucchini in a large bowl. Mix until well combined.
5. Pour mixture into a 9x13 casserole dish (sprayed with non-stick cooking spray). Top with 1 cup of cheese.
6. Salt and pepper to taste.
7. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20-25 minute until cheese melts and mixture starts to bubble around the edges.

Notes

*Make your rice ahead of time to assist in making this a quicker meal. Usually it is ¾ of a cup of Brown Rice and 1½ cups of water.
** Recipe for Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup I used

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I have been on a roasted veggies kick. I can’t help it. I know I have posted the pasta dish, but this one has potatoes and is perfect along side some eggs and smoked sausage. You could make it a bowl if you want.. add some cheese, add some other meats (or a different meat)… very versatile.

Michigan Ingredients: Green Pepper and Zucchini.

Some dear friends of ours dropped off some veggies recently and let me tell you… nothing says love like fresh produce!

Chop your peppers, line them up in rainbow fashion. You must do this as it looks so pretty. Some call it obsessive compulsive, I like to call it organized (ha ha ha).

Chop your zucchini and potatoes. I would recommend chopping your potatoes on the smaller size as potatoes are super hearty and take a bit longer to roast…. but if they are smaller, they roast faster. You don’t want to have potatoes that have that “raw” taste.

Place all veggies in a bowl and add about 1/2-1 tablespoon of olive oil and the seasonings I used (you can season however you wish….) this time were onion powder, garlic salt, and lemon pepper.

“The colors spike… the colors!” Who can name that commercial from the 90’s? Look at how beautiful that is. It is like a colorful, healthy heaven! I could eat this every day and be content. Talk about getting your rainbow of foods for the day.  ANYWAYS….. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spread the veggies out evenly in a single layer.

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees and roast for 30-35 minutes (or longer, depending on how “roasted” you want your veggies to be). You can roast these a bit longer, but I wanted my daughter to eat these as it is all about sacrifices we were eating breakfast for dinner  solo one evening (and I wanted to include a vegetable). Don’t you love having breakfast for dinner? We’ve been having them a lot this summer. Side note: She ate everything but the potatoes and a couple of zucchini pieces (and the sausage as she is going through a “I don’t want to eat meat” phase).

This is a great side dish for anything, but particularly when it’s breakfast for dinner. Get those veggies in people!!! It’s the summer and produce is booming in Michigan. Go and support your local farmers market

Roasted Vegetables... For Breakfast!

 

Author:

Michigan from Scratch

Recipe type: Side Dish

Serves: 4

Prep time: 20 mins

Cook time: 35 mins

Total time: 55 mins

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Roasted Vegetables that you can eat with any meal, even breakfast!!

Ingredients

• 1 Red Bell Pepper
• 1 Orange Bell Pepper
• 1 Yellow Bell Pepper
• 1 Green Bell Pepper
• 1 Zucchini (medium sized)
• 1-2 Red Potatoes
• ½ to 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil
• ½ teaspoon Onion Powder
• ¼ teaspoon Garlic Salt
• ¼ to ½ teaspoon of Lemon Pepper
• salt and pepper to taste if needed

Instructions

1. Core and chop your peppers and zucchini to 1 inch sized pieces.
2. Chop your potatoes into smaller sized pieces (so that they cook and are not raw while the other veggies are completely roasted).
3. Mix all veggies in a bowl with olive oil and seasonings.
4. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spread veggies out into an even layer.
5. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees and roast for 30-35 minutes (or longer, depending on how "roasted" you want your veggies to be).

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This particular recipe comes from my awesome mother-in-law (Hi!!).  This is one of my husband’s favorite cookies and it is one that I could honestly make all. the. time.  It has veggies in it, so it must be a health food right? Right. Glad we are on the same page.

Michigan Ingredients: Sugar, Zucchini, Cinnamon, and a farm fresh egg.

Seriously how delish are farm fresh eggs? My little family loves them and to us they just taste so much better. Maybe it’s mental… [maybe it’s Maybelline].

There is a fresh produce stand that I pass everyday on my way home from work and we stopped there this weekend to get some delicious veggies. I would have taken a picture… but a big storm was rolling in and it was starting to rain. I will be stopping there more often, so believe you me; you’ll get to catch a glimpse.

Shred (grate) your Zucchini.  You will need about a cup after the juice has been squeezed out.

Cream your butter, sugar, and egg until fluffy-ish.

Add Zucchini…

Mix until well combined.

Add your dry ingredients…

Mix until well combined. I promise that these cookies are not pink. For some reason, the lighting must have changed a bit… like…. the sun came back out for a second. It was storming when I was making these cookies.

Chop your walnuts and raisins. You don’t have to chop the raisins if you don’t want to, but I did this time so that my sweet Doll-Face (daughter) could eat a cookie (or 2).

Fold in the chopped walnuts and raisins until evenly distributed. Now would be time if you want to chill your cookie dough for a couple hours.

I decided to forgo that this time and bake right away. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and drop (by large spoonfuls… because c’mon… we’re making cookies people!) by spoonfuls. The size of your cookies will determine how many this recipe will yield. My size cookies yield roughly 18 cookies.  Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Seriously, these are the best cookies. They have a cake-like texture, which is fluffy and omg so good.  I am so appreciative of my mother-in-law for introducing me to these a while (and I mean a while) back.  You could…. not I’m not saying that I do… all the time eat these for a quick breakfast – just saying!

5.0 from 1 reviews

Zucchini Cookies

 

Author:

Michigan from Scratch

Recipe type: Cookies

Serves: 18 cookies

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Total time: 40 mins

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A simple Zucchini cake-like cookie recipe that one would consider healthy.

Ingredients

• 1 cup Sugar (white)
• 1 stick Butter (1/2 cup), softened
• 1 Egg
• 1 cup grated Zucchini
• 2 cups Flour
• 1 tablespoon Cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
• ½ teaspoon Salt
• 1 cup Chopped Walnuts
• 1 cup Raisins

Instructions

1. Beat your sugar, butter, and beaten egg together in a large bowl.
2. Squeeze the excess juice out of your zucchini and mix into your sugar and butter mixture.
3. Combine your flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt into a separate bowl. Add to the zucchini mixture and mix well.
4. Fold in your chopped walnuts and raisins.
5. Chill for two hours (if desired) or set oven for 375 degrees.
6. Drop dough on a cookie sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes.

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This is a dish that I actually started making when my daughter started eating solids. It is a light and fresh tasting dish that is highly addictive. To this day, she still loves the peppers. She eats those first before eating anything else.

This is a great side dish to have a barbecue, as it is light and you don’t have to worry about the dressing (typically mayo based) being out too long.

Michigan Ingredient: Meijer Orzo

I know, a bit of a stretch with the Michigan Ingredient here, BUT…. soon the produce season in Michigan will explode the scene  and there will be so many fresh ingredients, it will make your head spin.

First things first, chop your zucchini and peppers in half. I would recommend using the other halfs for a stir fry or to snack on because I mean, come on, veggies are great. I could easily be a vegetarian except for the minor detail that I love steak… and bacon.

Try to make the size of your veggies are the same to promote even roasting. When I was making this for my daughter, the “chunks” were much smaller. The size above is roughly 1/2  to 3/4 of an inch, give or take.

Place your veggies into a bowl and pour your olive oil over them. A little goes a long way, so trust me when I say that a tablespoon is sufficient.  Salt and pepper to taste, which I know seems weird to say when in fact you might not be tasting your veggies at this point; BUT you know your family best. If you need more pepper, use more pepper, or if you are limiting salt, don’t use as much salt.

Spread your veggies onto a greased, tin foil lined baking sheet in a single layer.

This is when I would start preheating my oven and getting my water boiling for the pasta.  I know it seems weird, but after making this all the time, I would go through this process so that everything times out where the pasta will be done around the same time the veggies are done (or close to it).

Of course, if you would like to roast your veggies longer, by all means, please do so. I know what tastes my family enjoys and not enjoys. Roasting the veggies brings the sweetness out of the veggies and makes it like a healthy candy that is good for you. My daughter still can not get enough of the peppers.

Combine your pasta and your veggies in a bowl (preferably the one you will be using, because who wants to dirty multiple dishes, not this girl). Zest your lemon over the pasta and veggies. Roll the lemon (to release the juices), cut that bad boy in half and squeeze half a lemon over the pasta. Give it a stir and a taste. If you want more lemon, by all means, use the other half.  This can be served hot or cold. Both are equally amazing.

Lemon Zucchini Pepper Pasta

 

Author:

Michigan from Scratch

Recipe type: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Serves: 6-8

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Total time: 35 mins

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A light, fresh salad that will compliment any barbecue.

Ingredients

• 1 cup Orzo Pasta (dry)
• ¾ cup Zucchini (half medium) - chopped
• ½ to ¾ cup Red Bell Pepper (half red pepper) - chopped
• ½ to ¾ cup Orange Bell Pepper (half orange pepper) - chopped
• 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
• Zest of one Lemon
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Half to one Lemon juice (depending on the size of Lemon and personal preference)

Instructions

1. Chop your veggies and place into a bowl.
2. Add your oil over the veggies in the bowl. Salt and pepper to taste. Mix until well coated and spread your veggies onto a greased, tin-foil lined baking sheet in a single layer.
3. Preheat your oven to 425 and roast your veggies for 20-25 minutes.
4. While your oven is preheating, bring water to a boil and cook Orzo until Al dente.
5. Once your pasta and veggies are ready, combine in a bowl and zest your lemon over top.
6. Roll your lemon (to release the juices) and cut your lemon in half. Squeeze your lemon over the pasta and give it a stir. Taste the pasta with a veggie and if you would like more lemon, squeeze the other half into your dish.

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