We gardened a lot when I was growing up. A lot. Like acres. Acres and acres. Peas and beans and corn and squash and okra and tomatoes.
My friends would talk about how they couldn’t wait until Saturday so they could sleep late in the late spring and summer. Not me. Daddy would wake us up around 5:30 to go plant or weed or pick. I disliked the getting up part, but it was nice to be pretty much finished before the heat of the day was at its worst. Of course, then there was shelling or snapping or shucking or blanching or canning or freezing. It was exhausting, but always ended up being worth it. Some nights we were up late at night shelling peas. And those fingers stained purple from the pea shells were like a badge of honor. Until we cleaned them off with lemon juice.
On Saturday, Mama and Daddy brought us fresh green beans and squash from their garden and several quarts of Mama’s awesome spaghetti sauce. I buy squash at the grocery store all the time, but I’m telling you, the fresh-from-the-garden stuff is better. More tender. Sweeter. Fresher. It’s just superior to the grocery store stuff in every way.
I grew up eating fresh squash that Mama had cooked with onions until it was soft and yummy. I actually went through a stage in which I disliked squash. I would try to spread it out all over my plate so that it looked like I had eaten more of it than I had. It never worked. And I came from a clean-your-plate household.
Tonight, I cooked squash and put a new twist on it. It was loved. By every member of my family – including Brees. I know because I dropped a piece on the floor and he gobbled it up and wanted more!
Parmesan Roasted Squash
- 2 pounds of fresh yellow squash
- 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups of grated Parmesan
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon of black pepper
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cut the ends from the squash and then cut it into uniform bite-sized chunks. Place in a large mixing bowl and add oil, Parmesan, salt, and pepper. Toss to combine.
Spread in a single layer onto a large baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes or until Parmesan is golden brown.
Well Duh #1: Rotate the baking sheet about halfway through the cooking time.
Well Duh #2: You can also use half squash, half zucchini.
Well Duh #3: Use the pre-grated Parmesan in the shaker container. Its drier texture makes it stick to the squash better
My family loved this side dish! So glad they aren’t afraid to try new things!
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