Three Cheese Summer Squash Pasta Bake

 Normally we plant way too many yellow squash and zucchini plants each year. This year we cut way back. Two zucchini and three yellow squash plants. Then they went batshit insane. We're getting about 900 pounds of produce daily. There's only so many pints of pickled zucchini and squash you can make. There's only so much zucchini bread. I wound up finding a really good recipe for a squash/zucchini pasta in a cream sauce. A real banger of a recipe. Then the book I found it in got put away. When I went to look for it, it was gone. Completely gone. Nobody could find it. Much swearing was done. That didn't help. I wound up just saying screw it and making it up myself. I ended up making a pretty tasty alfredo-style sauce that worked really well in a bake. The Wife was much impressed. It was declared a great success and we all had pickled limes. Then Beth got Scarlet Fever and died...Sorry, I drifted into Little Women there. 
Give it a spin and tell me what you think, as long as it's flattering. As always, notes are in blue. 

Three Cheese Summer Squash Pasta Bake

Ingredients

• 2 zucchini, cut into 1/4" cubes (about 4 cups)
• 2 yellow squash, cut into 1/4" cubes (about 3 cups)
• 1 cup chopped tomatoes
• 1/2 cup seeded and chopped red banana (or bell) peppers
• 1/2 red onion, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 cups fresh basil, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pound of pasta of your choice
• 1 pint heavy cream
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• salt and pepper

Directions

1. Cook pasta to a little harder than al dente (basically short the time by a couple extra minutes. The pasta is going to cook in the oven with the sauce for a while and you don't want it to get super soft.)
2. Preheat oven to 375F (190C, Gasmark 5) 
3. In a large, oven proof pot, heat the oil over medium heat (we used our trusty 6 quart enameled cast iron Dutch oven. If you don't have an oven safe pot, you'll just have to transfer everything to a greased Pyrex baking dish before putting it in the oven)
4. Add the zucchini, squash, peppers, onion, and garlic. Sauté about 4 minutes.
5. Add the tomato and sauté another 4 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste
6. In a saucepan, add the cream, cheeses, garlic powder, and pepper flakes. Heat on medium heat, stirring regularly so as not to scorch anything.
7. When the cheeses are completely melted into the sauce, add salt and pepper to taste.
8. Pour the sauce into the pot with the vegetables. Add the pasta and toss to coat everything. Put the pot in the oven for 12 minutes (this is where you'd transfer everything to a baking dish first, if your pot isn't oven safe)
9. Remove from oven and toss to make sure everything is evenly coated. 

Good Times were had by all. 
Except Beth. She died from Scarlet Fever. 

BONUS LINK TO RECIPE VIDEO:

Radish and Turnips with Spicy Greens

 Summer is in full swing and we have a garden bigger than is reasonable. We filled in a 20'x40' in-ground pool and converted it into a vegetable garden. We'll post up some pictures soon. It's pretty inspiring. This year we are growing things we have not tried before. For instance, turnips and radishes. We took our first tentative harvest of them and set about figuring out what to do with them.

Not particularly inspiring, but there you have it.

We figured turnip and radish greens were edible, so we just figured we'd just sauté up the lot of them. Garlic seemed like it would work with the flavors of these veggies. The horseradish was a last minute inspiration. The recipe came together quickly and cooks easily. It makes enough for two. Is it good? I guess that largely depends on your palate. It is definitely spicy. The Wife said she enjoyed it quite a bit. I thought it was OK, but that's pretty how our recipe assessments usually go. In the end, I'd say it's worth a try. It would certainly pair with barbecue or Cajun food. Give it a try and tell me what you think. I'll ignore anything critical. As always, notes are in blue.

Radishes and Turnips with Spicy Greens

Ingredients

• 6 radishes, thinly sliced
• 4 small turnips, thinly sliced
• Greens from the radishes and turnips, stems removed and greens cut into 1" ribbons
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tablespoon prepared white horseradish
• 2 tablespoons olive oil (we actually used bacon grease, but olive oil keeps this vegetarian)
• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. In a large pan or wok, heat the oil/grease over medium heat.
2. Add the garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes, not letting the garlic get brown
3. Add the radishes and turnip and sauté for 5-7 minutes, until they become just a little tender
4. Add the horseradish and greens, and sauté until the horseradish is incorporated and the greens have wilted.
5. Salt and pepper to taste 

Good Times!