Mama's Yellow Squash Bake
I come from a long line of great Southern cooks - my mother, my aunt, my grandmother and my great-grandmother loved cooking for their families. My grandmother once owned a BBQ restaurant and later was a cook at the local hospital. When we lived with her and later when we visited her in the summer we knew we would not get cereal for breakfast and sandwiches for lunch. She had a big spread twice a day with real food and she loved putting us to work harvesting from their garden. My grandfather would motivate us to shell BUSHELS of peas and butter beans by making it a fun contest for finding the weirdest or prettiest beans.
Her favorite way to serve squash was to dredge slices in flour and fry it with onion but her casserole was our favorite because it had cheese. Both ways were good but my sister and I loved the crunch of the crackers. Whenever I cook a meal with a lot of vegetables I think of the countless meals spent laughing and enjoying my family.
Ingredients
4 cups yellow squash - sliced
½ cup onion - chopped
1 sleeve of Ritz crackers – crushed (35-40 buttery crackers)
1 cup cheddar cheese - shredded
2 large eggs eggs - beaten
¾ cup milk
¼ cup butter - melted
Salt and pepper to taste
ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2. Cook squash and onion in a large skillet over medium heat with a small amount of water. Cover, and cook until squash is tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well, and place in a large bowl. Salt and pepper to taste.
3. In a medium bowl, mix together cracker crumbs and cheese. Stir half of the cracker mixture into the cooked squash and onions. In a small bowl, mix the eggs and milk, then add to squash mixture. Stir in 1/4 cup melted butter, and season with salt and pepper. Spread into a baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cracker mixture, and dot with 2 tablespoons butter.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until lightly browned.
I hope you enjoy this as much as we do!
-Tracy