At any rate, even if we do despise the taste of at least 1 vegetable, you can't ignore the health benefits. Any health magazine or health expert will tell you to be sure to get your servings of vegetables in every day. In order to do so, I keep my eyes open for recipes or helpful tips, knowing full well that my veggie/fruit intake could always use a boost.
My favorite news source, NPR (of course), hosted a story on Weekend Edition Sunday about how to get your vegetables in. According to food essayist, Susan Chang, you can 1.) hide them, 2.) wrap them in bacon to overpower the veggie's texture and/or flavor (I kid you not!), or 3.) remove the most offensive element which makes the vegetable so detestable. Choice #2 is compelling but only if you like bacon. But just because the bacon is surrounding vegetables doesn't make it healthy, so 3 servings of bacon-wrapped vegetables a day is not, as Martha says, a good thing. Choice #1 is certainly a theoretical possibility. In the case of squash, I saw a recipe on the Food Network for homemade Mac 'N Cheese made with frozen pureed squash. Apparently it adds to the creaminess of the dish as well as the nutrients available from squash. I read on-line reviews of this recipe, however, and many said that the squash flavor was over-powering... eek! This recipe thus becomes a risky endeavor as I would hate to ruin Mac 'N Cheese, one of my most favorite comfort foods, by overpowering it with squash. So... bring on option #3. As simple as it initially sounds, I had never thought of this before. Clearly it requires a little reflection and research to identify and remove offensive elements.
I first identified the offensive element of squash at a very tender young age. My mom baked 2 squash halves and put a little melted butter in it. Ever since then, I can't remember how it tastes but only that it was extremely mushy and I haven't touched it since. So in order to avoid the mushiness I know to avoid baking it. What about... the grill?! As my family and I were particularly big fans of the grill this summer, we grilled every vegetable we could get our hands on. So, I found that taking 1 whole summer squash and dicing it into 1/2" to 1" pieces along with a host of other veggies (i.e. cucumbers, portabella mushrooms, asparagus, sweet onions, etc., etc.) and marinating them with some olive oil, soy sauce, and pepper are one way in which I am truly happy to be eating squash. No joke! Eventually, I will overcome my mental block and try the Macaroni and 4 Cheeses with squash recipe. See below the recipe below if you get brave before me...
Click here to read/ listen to 'Food You Don't Like and How to Eat It'
Macaroni & 4 Cheeses*
from Ellie Krieger on the Food Network
Ingredients:
- Cooking spray
- 1 pound elbow macaroni
- 2 (10-ounce) packages frozen pureed winter squash
- 2 cups 1 percent low-fat milk
- 4 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (about 1 1/3 cups)
- 2 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, grated (about 2/3 cup)
- 1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon powdered mustard
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
- 2 tablespoons unseasoned bread crumbs
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the macaroni and cook until tender but firm, about 5 to 8 minutes. Drain and transfer to a large bowl.Meanwhile, place the frozen squash and milk into a large saucepan and cook over a low heat, stirring occasionally and breaking up the squash with a spoon until defrosted. Turn the heat up to medium and cook until the mixture is almost simmering, stirring occasionally. Remove the pan from heat and stir in the Cheddar, Jack cheese, ricotta cheese, salt, mustard and cayenne pepper. Pour cheese mixture over the macaroni and stir to combine. Transfer the macaroni and cheese to the baking dish.Combine bread crumbs, Parmesan and oil in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the top of the macaroni and cheese. Bake for 20 minutes. Then broil for 3 minutes so the top is crisp and nicely browned.
Cook time: 40 minutes
Makes 8 servings
*Click here to see visit the Food Network website and see the reviews with suggestions on how to add creaminess, take out the squashiness, substitute different kinds of cheeses, etc, etc. Enjoy!!!
