This is a variation on the old standby squash casserole. You know, the stuffing-condensed-soup-and-sour-cream classic recipe that’s in pretty much every “down home” cook’s recipe file. It’s always been one of my favorite comfort foods.

When I first set up house on my own, I made sure I got a copy of the recipe from my mom… then I ended up married to a guy who didn’t care for yellow squash. The nerve! I resigned myself to only feasting on my favorite casserole only when we went to visit my folks at holidays.

Anyway, fast forward a few years and I decided to introduce our toddler son to my favorite squash casserole. For his sake, I decided to puree the squash (easy-peasy with a food processor) and eliminated any added salt. To make up for the “missing” salt, I added a bit of poultry seasoning for flavor.

And come to find out, once I did that, my husband thought it was pretty tasty, too! Who knew? Now, it’s one of his favorites, as well.

Ingredients

• 2 lb. yellow squash, sliced or cubed
• 1 med. onion, thick sliced
• 1 T butter, melted
• 1 can cream of chicken or cream of celery condensed soup, undiluted
• 1 cup sour cream (regular or light)
• 1 tsp Watkins poultry seasoning
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 1 8-oz bag (4 cups) herb-seasoned stuffing

Instructions

Cook squash and onion in boiling water until tender and onion is translucent. Drain and place in bowl of food processor equipped with chopper blade. Add one tablespoon melted butter, sour cream, condensed soup and poultry seasoning to food processor bowl. Cover and process until the squash has reached desired texture and ingredients are thoroughly mixed.

(If you don’t have a food processor, a blender will work well, too, but you may have to process in multiple batches and mix by hand when done.)

Pour one stick of melted butter over herb-seasoned stuffing. Stir to mix thoroughly.

Stir squash mixture together with three cups of stuffing mixture and spread evenly in large casserole dish. Spread remaining stuffing mixture evenly across the top. Bake at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes. For best results, let stand for a few minutes before serving.

Time saving tip: can be prepared ahead of time and refrigerated or frozen until needed. Simply combine all ingredients without the final baking. Thaw (if necessary) then bake at 375 degrees F for approximately 45 minutes before serving.

Copyright © Diane Aull. All rights reserved.

Here’s an example of semi-stealth veggies — a rich, thick spaghetti sauce that’s loaded with vegetables without looking like it’s loaded with vegetables. You’ll need a large pan or pot (I use what they call a “Texas fry pan”) and unless you’re feeding an army, you’ll have plenty left over to freeze for a later meal.

You’ll notice I don’t add any salt. We tend to not use much salt in cooking around Diane’s Kitchen and my husband and son find plenty of flavor in this as-is. If you prefer, you can add salt to taste.

Hints: use a food processor or hand chopper to finely mince the onion, carrots and celery — the finer, the better. Add more diced tomatoes or tomato sauce if you like a thinner sauce.

Ingredients

• 1 lb. ground beef (substitute ground turkey if desired)
• 1 med. onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 2 carrots, finely minced
• 2 stalks celery, strings removed, finely minced
• 1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 15-oz can tomato sauce
• 1 6-oz can tomato paste
• 2 tsp Watkins 100% organic basil or Watkins gourmet basil
• 1 T Watkins Italian seasoning blend

Instructions

Combine meat, onion, garlic, carrots and celery in large pan and brown over medium heat until meat is cooked through. Drain. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer, uncovered, for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Serve over angel hair pasta; sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.

Copyright © Diane Aull. All rights reserved.

I stumbled across a great blog the other day: My Husband Hates Veggies. There are some absolutely awesome recipes I can’t wait to try — like her trick of sneaking butternut squash and carrots into mashed sweet potatoes. She’s got all kinds of techniques for dealing with a picky eater who turns his nose up at vegetables.

Now, I’m lucky — my son and husband both like many vegetables. Broccoli, carrots, lima beans… well, okay, my husband doesn’t care for lima beans all that much, but since he usually substitutes spinach or turnip greens when Daniel and I have lima beans, I guess I can’t complain about that.

In fact, the other night, as we were finishing up supper, Daniel said he was still hungry. When I asked him what he was in the mood for, he said he’d like a “nice tossed salad.” So, of course, I made him one — I mean, how often does a six year old say he wants a salad? Hearts of romaine, baby-cut carrots, a sprinkle of sliced almonds and some low-fat Ranch dressing and his hunger was satisfied.

Even so, I like to work extra veggies into our diet whenever I can.

So here’s my Ninja trick for “semi-stealth veggies.” I say “semi-stealth” because they’re not so invisible that nobody can tell they’re there, but they’re mixed in so well, nobody seems to care (at least, not around this house). Of course, if you’re feeding hard-core veggie-haters, your situation might require more elaborate means of concealment.

So here’s my method for “undercover” veggies.

I take firm veggies like celery, green pepper, onions or carrots and run ‘em through the food processor (or use one of those push-top hand choppers — before I got my food processor I was using my Pampered Chef hand chopper almost every day). Mince them up really, really small. Little teensy tiny itty-bitty pieces.

I’ll do at least a cup, cup and a half of each at a time, so I can use what I need right away and put the rest in the fridge to use over the next day or two. Or if it’s a “Make Ahead Saturday” when I’m preparing multiple dishes for the coming week(s), I just might use ‘em all up at once.

Then add them to things like meatloaf, taco meat, spaghetti sauce, casseroles, meatballs, hamburger patties — pretty much anything where you’re using ground beef.

I usually put in about a cup to a cup and a half of veggies per pound of ground beef, in whatever combination I have handy. Depending on the other seasonings in the dish, you could do the same thing with firm-textured fruits like apples or pears, which would impart a sweeter flavor.

Just add some kind of binding agent in things like meatloaf, meatballs or hamburger patties (like an egg or egg substitute and some seasoned bread crumbs or stuffing mix) to absorb the extra moisture from the veggies and help the meat mixture hold its shape. (You might have to experiment a bit with the poportions until you can consistently get the texture and flavor you want.)

(Oh, yeah, and they’re excellent sprinkled over the top of a tossed salad, too — tasty, crunchy, and probably a lot better for you than croutons.)

Give it a try!