Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Yellow Cheddar Squash Casserole (wheat/gluten free)

This evening I was in the mood to have squash casserole with dinner.  The recipe I typically use has crushed Ritz crackers in it...so I decided to see if I could modify it a bit and substitute almond flour for the cracker crumbs -- I made a few additional modifications as well.  It turned out absolutely delicious with a "souffle-like" texture.  For dinner we had grilled Lemon Dill Marinated Wild Salmon served with Yellow Cheddar Squash Casserole and Green Beans w/ Almonds.  Below, you will find a few pics that I snapped as well as the recipe I concocted as I went along.  You'll find the recipe for the squash casserole below.  Enjoy!

Fresh out of the oven
BOOM!
Voila!

Yellow Cheddar Squash Casserole

INGREDIENTS:

5 - 6 cups yellow squash, sliced
1/2 cup onion, diced
1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt
1/2 to 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
Dash cayenne pepper, optional
4 tablespoons butter, divided
1 cup almond flour, divided
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
4 eggs, beaten (I used 2 eggs plus 1/2 cup Egg Beaters)
1/4 cup milk or half-n-half
3 tablespoons sour cream, optional

DIRECTIONS:

In a large non-stick skillet, saute yellow squash and onion in 2-3 tablespoons of butter (do not add water).  Stir-fry until tender (cover for a bit, if necessary, to help cook it more quickly); transfer cooked squash and onions to a medium mixing bowl.  In a separate bowl or glass measuring cup, beat eggs, milk, sour cream and add salt, pepper, cayenne to taste; set aside. 

In a small bowl, mix 1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese with 1/2 cup almond flour; toss with fork until well mixed.  Add the almond flour/cheese mixture to the bowl of squash; toss and combine well.  Pour beaten egg and milk mixture into the squash mixture and combine well.  

In a separate small bowl, place remaining 1/2 cup of almond flour and remaining 1 tablespoon of butter.  Cut butter into the almond flour (like you do when you make the topping for a fruit crisp).  Once butter is cut in and the mixture is crumbly, add remaining 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese and toss well.  Pour squash mixture into a lightly greased baking or casserole dish; top with the almond flour/butter/cheddar mixture and sprinkle with black pepper, if desired.   Bake in a 375 degree oven for approximately 35 minutes, or until golden brown and done.

*Note:  You can add more cheese to the casserole if you like.  Most squash casseroles use 1 to 1-1/2  cups of milk along with the egg mixture.  I reduced the liquid to 1/4 cup of half-n-half since the almond flour doesn't absorb as much as the usual "52 Ritz crackers" that would be in the original recipe.

20 comments:

Jan J. said...

This looks delicious and squash is pretty cheap right now - I'm going to try this tomorrow night! Thanks for the recipe.

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Thanks. Hope you like it!

Liz said...

Your recipes are delicious and they have helped me and inspired me to cook wheat free. Thanks for sharing and perfecting the recipes! Pictures are always besutiful. From someone who likes to cook but is trying to relearn to cook without using the wheat products.

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Thanks so much Liz! Cooking without wheat does take a little practice...but after you get some practice, you begin to get the hang of it. I too love to cook and I can honestly say that I am still able to enjoy cooking without wheat -- it just takes a little time, patience and practice! :-)

1956okie said...

I made this for my family last night, and it received RAVE reviews all around! We nearly had to have an arm-wrestling tournament to decide who got the leftovers for their lunches today. :) This one's going into our regular side dish rotation. It's excellent! And you're really helping me gradually, painlessly move them toward a wheat-free diet. We still have some who won't let go, but recipes like this REALLY help me make my point! Thanks!

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi 1956okie! Thanks so much! Wow, whoever thought that family would be "wrestling" over who go the leftover "veggie side dish"...huh? And a WHEAT free one at that? LOL I honestly do believe that this is truly the key to successfully making the transition to wheat free a realistic and livable achievement. If the food doesn't taste good or you feel deprived...why would anyone in their right mind want to do it? Part of why I am able to easily sustain this way of life/eating is because I have made it a point to prove that it can be done and done so ENJOYABLY! I'm thrilled your family liked it and hope you find a few other recipes here to help them make the transition easier and more enjoyable! Thanks for letting me know you liked it. :-)

Lori said...

This was absoulutely delicious! Living in Louisiana,we like our food a little spicier than many, so I replaced the salt, pepper, and Cayenne with my favorite Cajun Seasoning. I'll use more next time, but it was spectacular! So nice to finally find a GF dish that didn't involve rice or processed garbage.

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Lori! Thanks so much for letting me know you enjoyed it -- I bet it is awesome with your Cajun seasoning -- here in Georgia, I like Tony Chachere's -- I'm sure you use different kinds that are more authentic there in Louisiana. I'm so happy you enjoyed it and thanks for your kind words! :-)

CrazyAnn said...

I made this for our lunch today and had to come back and compliment this awesome dish.

As is per usual for me, I didn't have every single ingredient that the recipe called for. This time, I was surprised to find that it was almond flour I was low on. But I had coconut flour. So for the half of the called for flour in the squash part of the recipe I subbed coconut flour and it was just great. I knew that in the past that this recipe could be kind of wet. And coconut flour would actually help with that issue. Then I used my remaining almond flour in the topping and thought that it was perfect there. I may rewrite my version of the recipe so I don't forget I made this deviation and that it worked.

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Ann! So glad you enjoyed it and that your substitution of coconut flour turned out great. Coconut flour can be tricky sometimes but you were right about using it in a more moist dish. Glad it worked out great for you! Sometimes we are the most resourceful when we are missing an ingredient and try something that we might not have tried otherwise. Thanks for letting me know! :-)

Alice B. said...

Made this again last night. This is one of my all time favorite sides!

Anonymous said...

This is yum!

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Anonymous...

Yay! So happy you enjoyed it! :-)

Unknown said...

I just found this tasty recipe yesterday and made it today. I especially like the fact that it not only tastes delicious, but it is diabetic friendly. Thank you for sharing this recipe.

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

So happy you enjoyed it beargramma! 😀

GF gramma said...

How many servings from this recipe? Sounds wonderful. Thanks so much. Sandy

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi, it serves 6 to 8 side dish servings. :-)

Gina said...

I've made this several times and loved it. Now I'm wondering if it could be frozen and baked later?

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Gina,

The only thing I’m concerned about is whether the squash would become watery when it thawed after freezing. Certain vegetables can do that. I would suggest that next time when you make it, scoop a small casserole amount out (maybe a cup or two) and freeze it and do a test bake to see if it changes consistency. I’d hate to have you ruin a full recipe sized version, especially if it was for a special occasion like Easter, etc. 😁

Gina said...

Good idea, thanks, I will try!