A Just Clause – Recipes

Thanks to Booked For Lunch’s short order cook, Tommy, Angelica is up to her chin in zucchini and needed to find ways to use them up. Here are a few of her recipes!

IMG_2376-cropped smZucchini Sausage Casserole
Ingredients
2 pounds zucchini, coarsely grated
1 pound hot or sweet ground Italian sausage
2 onions, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
5 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 to 3 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
salt
freshly ground pepper
hot sauce

Topping
6 tablespoons butter, melted
¾ cup fresh bread crumbs
½ cup grated cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a wide, 2-quart baking dish, or coat it with nonstick spray. Put the grated zucchini into a colander to drain for about 30 minutes or wrap it in a clean tea towel and gently squeeze it to remove the excess liquid. Place the zucchini in a large mixing bowl.
Heat a large skillet and add the sausage. Cook until the sausage starts to brown, stirring to break it up. Pour off all but about 3 tablespoons grease. Add the onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook 1 more minute. Add the zucchini to the sausage mixture. Stir in the cream, the bread crumbs, the eggs, and the cheese. Add salt, pepper, and hot sauce to taste. Pour the mixture into a baking dish. The casserole may be refrigerated at this point for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
For the topping, combine the butter and the bread crumbs. Sprinkle evenly over the casserole. Bake, uncovered, until hot through, about 30 minutes. Sprinkle the top with the ½ cup of cheese and return to the oven just until the cheese is melted and lightly browned.

Yield: 6 servings.


Zucchini Soup
Ingredients
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
kosher salt
freshly ground pepper
1½ pounds zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced ¼ inch thick
2/3 cup vegetable stock or low-sodium chicken broth
1½ cups water

In a large saucepan, melt the butter in the olive oil. Add the onion and garlic; season with salt and pepper and cook over moderately low heat, stirring frequently, until softened; 7 to 8 minutes. Add the zucchini and cook, stirring frequently, until softened; about 10 minutes. Add the stock and the water and bring to a simmer; cook until the zucchini is very soft, about 10 minutes.
Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender until it’s silky-smooth. Return the soup to the saucepan and season with salt and pepper. Serve it either hot or chilled, garnished with julienned zucchini.

Yield: 4 servings


French pie - Quiche LorraineZucchini and Bacon Quiche
Ingredients
1 (9-inch) refrigerated pie dough round
¼ pound sliced bacon, coarsely chopped
2 medium zucchini (¾ pound total), halved lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick slices
½ teaspoon salt, divided
¾ cup heavy cream
¾ cup whole milk
¼ teaspoon black pepper
3 large eggs
1 cup (4 ounces) Swiss cheese, coarsely chopped

With the oven rack in the middle position, preheat to 450°F. Fit the pie dough into a 9½-inch deep-dish pie plate and lightly prick all over. Bake according to package instructions, then transfer the crust in pie plate to a rack. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.
While the crust bakes, cook the bacon in a large, heavy skillet over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until just crisp. Transfer the bacon with a slotted spoon to a paper-towel-lined plate, reserving the fat in skillet. Add the zucchini and ¼ teaspoon salt to the fat in skillet and sauté over moderately high heat, stirring frequently, until the zucchini is tender and starting to brown, then transfer with a slotted spoon to a plate.
Heat the cream, milk, pepper, and remaining ¼ teaspoon salt in a 1- to 2-quart saucepan until the mixture reaches a bare simmer, then remove from the heat.
Whisk together the eggs in a large heat-proof bowl, then gradually whisk in the hot cream mixture until combined. Stir in the bacon, zucchini, and cheese together and pour into the piecrust. Bake until the filling is just set, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer the quiche pan to a rack to cool slightly before serving.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings


Zucchini BreadZUCCHINI BREAD
Ingredients
3 cups shredded zucchini (3 medium)
1 2⁄3 cups granulated sugar
2⁄3 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ cup coarsely chopped nuts
½ cup raisins, optional

Move the oven rack to low position so that the tops of pan will be in the center of the oven.
Preheat the oven to 350°F degrees. Grease bottom only of a loaf pan, 9 x 5 x 3-inches, with shortening. In a large bowl, mix the zucchini, sugar, oil, vanilla, and eggs. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Pour into the pan. Bake for 70 to 80 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in the pan on wire rack. Loosen the sides of the loaf from the pan; remove from the pan and place top side up on wire rack. Cool completely before slicing. Wrap tightly and store at room temperature up to 4 days, or refrigerate for up to 10 days.

Yield: 1 loaf (approximately 12 slices)