Saturday, November 27, 2010

Recipe Review for Zucchini Casserole from H-B-L and I've Been Tagged



I made the Zucchini Casserole recipe from Heal-Balance-Live for Thanksgiving this year and it was wonderful. I wasn't able to get a good photo of it though. For one, casseroles are hard to photograph. Then, this was the last dish to come out of the oven and hit the table in time to eat, and we all just pounced on it...getting the camera was not on my mind. I've had this recipe bookmarked for awhile and wish I'd made it sooner. I love casseroles and this was perfect...flavorful, cheesy and homey, mmmm. Karen's "SCD Seasoned Breadcrumbs" recipe for the topping was very good and would be perfect to add to some other dishes. I might try it on my "Mac" and Cheese.

This recipe does take some planning to get much of the moisture out of the zucchini. Karen recommends starting five hours before. I did, placing the shredded zucchini in a large mesh colander and setting it over a mixing bowl. I lightly salted it and every now and then I would wring it with my hands (clean hands of course). Over time there was a lot of liquid in the bowl, which I dumped on my flowerbed. I doubled the cheese it called for and it worked well. This was so good I'll be making it again soon!!

Also for Thanksgiving, a nice post from The Daily Lipid called Thanksgiving, A Source of Eternal Joy. I think this post reminds us of what the holiday season is truly about.

Also in the news...I've been tagged. Ina of Gluten-Free Delightfully Delicious tagged me in a game of food blog tag. It's a game that gives us a chance to know our food blogging neighbors a little better. I answer 10 questions from Ina, and then I get to "tag" other bloggers with my 10 questions. So here goes:

1. What is your absolute favorite food? (this can be a tough one, so go ahead and include a few)
I think spices and herbs are. They allow you to make everything taste good.

2. Who is your favorite Food Mentor, or Chef, and why?
My grandmother, she taught me to cook. We could always talk about food.

3. What meal did you first cook, that inspired you to become a better cook, and to create new recipes?
Actually it was a cookie, not a meal. I don't remember my first attempt, but my parents do. When I was a toddler they woke up to the smell of burning and found me in the kitchen with a plate of beans on the stove. I looked at them and said "chocolate man". The time I do remember was kindergarten. In class we made a no bake cookie. The first time my mom left me and a friend home alone, I pulled out flour, sugar and food coloring and tried to go off memory. My mom came home to a mess, and I have been determined ever since to be a better cook. I would cut out photos of food as a child and dream of making them one day.

4. What is your favorite cook book?
I am a total cookbook whore. I read cookbooks on vacation, for fun, before I go to bed, etc. I absolutely love them. I have too many favs to mention. Some are Elaine Corn's 365 Ways to Cook Eggs, The Joy of Cooking, just about anything in the Wei-Chaun Publishing Series... and more recent Dana Carpender's 500 Low Carb Recipes.

5. What kitchen gadget can you not live without in the kitchen and why?
My timer. I'm so absent minded that I fully depend on it.

6. Where in the world would you most love to eat, and what food would that be?
Malaysia, and it would be just about anything they served me.

7. What are some of your favorite recipes on your blog?
The curry and wing recipes.

8. What food, will you absolutely not eat and why?

I used to say Brussels Sprouts, but I've finally found ways to enjoy them. Lately, I have read about how healthy organ meats are for you. I can eat liver, but not brains, heart, etc. I wish I could because I think they are very beneficial, but ewww.

9. Do you grow your own food? And if so, what is your favorite food to grow?
I wish I had time to. Eddie has been the gardener so far. I would like to grow pickling cucumbers and learn how to make pickles.

10.Who in the world, would you most love to share a beautiful dinner with?
My husband Eddie.

Now, I would like to tag:

Paul of Eating SCD
Zoe of Z's Cup of Tea
Tracey of Unbreaded
Stephanie of The Dairy Free Diva
Melanie of A Foodies Fall from Grace

Here are my 10 questions:
1. What is your first cooking memory?
2. Which two spices, herbs or flavorings do you find most useful (besides salt and pepper)?
3. If you could be a fly on the wall of any kitchen, which one would it be? (past, present or future)
4. If you could invite a historical figure to your home to cook dinner for who would it be? (past, present or future)
5. If you could spend one week in any country in the world, in an average kitchen, learning to cook the local cuisine, which country would it be?
6. When you are very busy, what easy meal/dish do you usually prepare?
7. What are your favorite recipes on your blog?
8. If you could have anyone cook a meal for you, who would it be?
9. Is there a meal you will never forget? Describe it?
10.What is your favorite dessert?

5 comments:

  1. So glad you enjoyed the zucchini, I love the stories of you baking as a child, priceless!

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  2. Tracee - loved your answers to number 3 and 8! Thanks for joining in on the fun! Ina

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  3. Those are hard questions! I hear ya on the casseroles. They are really hard to photograph and really when they come out of the oven...it is go time! It looks great though!

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  4. Thanks Sarena. What a lovely blog you have. I used to live in Cabbagetown in the 1990's so I have fond memories Atlanta.

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