Read & Print Recipe from www.greatgrandmother.org

 

In Between Recipes...ideas for late summer and early fall 2009

For those days when the garden bounty is still plentiful, when the days become shorter and our nights become cooler, and when our appetites start to crave for a bit more substance, we turn to In Between Recipes.

1. Broccoli heads are smaller and perhaps sweeter if they, like other brassicas, were exposed to a bit of cold night chill. I cut them, mix them with some readily-available stuff from the pantry, and make Broccoli Casserole.

Chop three cups of fresh broccoli into small pieces, including the tasty stems and mix in a bowl with one chopped onion, a cup of corn (frozen is fine), and a half stick of butter. Salt and pepper it to taste. Place it in your microwave oven for a bit, until softened and the butter melted. Stir.

At the same time, steam (or cook) 1.5 to 2 cups of white rice, depending on how "ricey" you like your dishes. Cool the rice and add to the broccoli mix. This can be done ahead of time.

When you are ready to cook the dish, preheat your oven to 325 F, bring the broccoli mixture to room temperature, and whip two or three eggs (it depends, again, on the size) and a 1/4 cup of milk, along with the "extras"...Cabot sharp cheddar cheese, a cup of chopped ham, leftover shredded chicken...your choice! This mixture is used to bind the broccoli mixture.

Gently stir together, add a cracker crumb or breadcrumb topping, and bake until done. Let cool for a couple minutes after and serve.

 

2. Another of my favorite 'in between" recipes is my homemade Rice-a-Roni. Now, I did not grow up with this, but I did occassionally eat it when dining at my friends' houses as a kid. But back then, it came in a box. Here's my in-between take--a more modern version.

I start with a couple cups of leftover vermicelli, pastina, stars, or other small (fast cooking) pasta. In the case of angel hair pasta, which I use a lot, I crumble it into small pieces (like the boxed version). Then I add a cup of white rice. I would normally use a brown rice for my dishes, but the cooking time would not be the same. Anyway, mix them as the starch component of this dish.

Now comes the fun part! I make a special stock made from homemade chicken broth, white wine, fresh herbs, and small dices of pancetta for flavor. You can also add some fresh green peas, which cook quickly and do not tend to soak up any liquid.

I use a 1:1 ratio for my rice (one cup of stock for every one cup of rice) and a half cup of stock for each dry cup of pasta. You have to eye it a bit, but it works well.

Mix the ingredients, place large pot, and gently cook on your range. Toward the end, you can check on it and add more stock if needed, or depending on how you like your dish...soupy, dry, or just right.

I eat it without any other dish, and always with a glass of wine.

 

3. When zucchini is growing like crazy (and often it gets a bit too big to be tender and sweet), I grab a huge zuke, a giant sweet onion (in season!), some late harvest tomatoes, a couple cups of grated Parmesan cheese, good olive oil, fresh herbs, and a cup of panko bread crumbs and make a end-of-summer vegetable bake.

Layer this like you would lasagna in a baking dish that can accomodate at least three layers. Pre-heat at 350 F. The layers are simple: thinly sliced zuke rounds (maybe no more than a fifth of an inch thick--or use your mandolin to make uniform cuts), sliced (not chopped) sweet onion, chopped herbs, EVOO drizzle, salt and pepper, and thinly sliced tomatoes. Add a bit of grated cheese to each layer. Repeat and then top with panko. Bake until tender inside.