What is Zucchini Casserole?

There are so many versions of zucchini casserole, it’s impossible to define just one. Some versions have layers of sliced zucchini and other vegetables like bell peppers or tomatoes interspersed with layers of cheese. This is more like zucchini lasagna, and can be an excellent light vegetarian meal. It also makes a great side dish or a fun thing to bring as a potluck dish.

Other types of zucchini casserole may be called Southern zucchini casserole. One very popular variant uses grated zucchini, or other summer squash, and several other key ingredients to make a crunchy dish. In most recipes that use grated zucchini, you’ll also use Bisquick and toss the grated zucchini in the Bisquick mix. Additional ingredients like eggs, onion, parmesan cheese and garlic are then added.

In this form of zucchini casserole, the combined ingredients are placed in a baking dish, and baked for half an hour to an hour depending upon size. Many people love to bring this dish for holiday dinners, though it’s really easy to make and suited for any time of the year. It also may be harder to get fresh zucchini locally during the winter, and quality of zucchini really does count when making this dish.

Many love this second zucchini casserole because picky people will often get plenty of veggies this way without complaint. Most versions of zucchini casserole do a great job of disguising vegetable taste. These casseroles may actually become favorites among picky eaters.

Another type of zucchini casserole for which you’ll find numerous recipes, combines cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup with sour cream, prepackaged cubed stuffing, and cubed zucchini. There are different instructions for layering stuffing, zucchini cubes, and soup to create yet another delicious dish that is very creamy. Usually part of the stuffing cubes are place on top to give some crunch to the dish too.

If you have only a few ingredients on hand, you can easily make a quick zucchini casserole with some sliced tomatoes and zucchini and a little bit of parmesan cheese mixed with bread crumbs. Layer the slices into a dish, top with cheese and breadcrumbs, and bake. You can even use stale bread that you’ve crumbled up in the blender, and a little garlic salt or one chopped clove over the top of the veggies for extra flavor.

When zucchini season is upon us, any home gardeners typically have more zucchini than they can use. Friends may give out extra squash regularly.