Cheesy Squash Casserole Tweetcipe

My CSA basket has given up more than its fair share of squash this summer…butternut, patty pan, zucchini, trumpet and yellow squash. I grilled it, baked it, boiled it, sautéd it with onions, made ratatouille with it and stuffed it. I was pretty tired of it in all its culinary forms until I remembered my Mom’s squash casserole. As I recall, the original recipe called for ingredients like Velveeta cheese, canned green chilis and cream cheese. I also recall that it tasted very good!  So I decided to recreate her recipe and update some of the ingredients. Try my version and tell me what you think!

Cheesy Squash Casserole

4 medium sized yellow squash (substitute 1 zucchini if you want), trimmed and cut into chunks

1 medium onion, diced medium

2 T butter

1 ½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 egg, beaten

¾ cup green chilis, chopped (I used roasted Hatch chilis that I had previously frozen, but canned is OK, or for something different use fresh or jarred roasted red peppers)
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a casserole pot sauté the onion and squash in butter. When the squash is partially cooked, remove pan from heat. Stir in the cheese, chilis or red peppers, salt and pepper. Add the beaten egg and stir well. Cook in the center of the oven for 25-30 minutes. The casserole is done when you see a few brown spots on the top.  Allow to sit for 15 minutes before serving.

Note: Frozen squash works well with this recipe. Just sauté the onion in butter, then add the thawed, drained squash and follow the rest of the recipe as written.