Squish Squash

I have had lots of squash to use up which has been wonderful. I love this season of veggies. I decided to take a break from feeding my family so much raw squash, and because it's a chilly rainy day (high of 60!) put the oven to some use. It's been a while since it has been fired up. :)
Here's what I found that I had almost all of the ingredients on hand for, and the kids and Rob were excited about. I just baked it, and the kids had some for lunch. We'll eat the rest for dinner.

I prepared it last night and left it in the fridge overnight to soak. I would recommend this as it gives the bread a chance to soak everything up. This is a low-fat version from Cooking Light, and don't omit the artichokes! They are wonderful and pull the whole thing together. If you use lots of different colors the top looks bright and cheerful, like confetti. For lunch you can see in the picture I served it with some Sauteed Sesame Kale, and half a banana (remember it's for the kiddos, so they always want a side of fruit:)

Also the kids and I made pinatas, sort of, yesterday. We were inspired by my neice Abby, who made a REAL pinata, but since I had my three kids and a 1 and 2 year old yesterday, I did the best I could. We filled paper bags, rolled the tops over and stapled them, and then glued tissue and streamers on them. The kids had fun! That's what the second picture is of. Have a great weekend! I'll be at a retreat for MOPS. I can't wait!

Vegetable and Cheese Strata

From Cooking Light Magazine, Nov 1996

Buy canned, quartered artichoke hearts because they're less expensive than whole artichoke hearts. Buy presliced mushrooms.

Ingredients
1 teaspoon olive oil

2 cups diced zucchini ( I used a mix of green and yellow)

2 cups sliced mushrooms (I used portabellas)

1 cup diced red bell pepper (I used a mix I had of red, orange and yellow)

1 cup diced onion (I used red)

2 garlic cloves, crushed

3/4 cup chopped drained canned artichoke hearts

8 cups (1-inch) cubed Italian bread (about 8 ounces) (I used 100% Whole Wheat Batard

Cooking spray

1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat extra-sharp cheddar cheese (I used white sharp)

1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

1 1/2 cups egg substitute (I used organic)

1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 (12-ounce) can evaporated skim milk

Oregano sprigs (optional)

Preparation

Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add zucchini, mushrooms, bell pepper, onion, and garlic, and sauté vegetable mixture 6 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat. Stir in artichokes, and set aside.

Arrange bread cubes in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Spoon zucchini mixture evenly over bread cubes, and sprinkle mixture with cheeses.

Combine egg substitute and remaining ingredients (except oregano sprigs) in a large bowl; stir with a whisk. Pour egg mixture over zucchini mixture. Cover mixture with foil; chill up to 1 day.

Preheat oven to 325°. Bake strata, covered, 1 hour or until bubbly. Garnish with oregano sprigs, if desired.
Yield: 8 servings

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 229(19% from fat); FAT 4.9g (sat 2.3g,mono 1.5g,poly 0.3g); IRON 2.7mg; CHOLESTEROL 14mg; CALCIUM 336mg; CARBOHYDRATE 29.1g; SODIUM 570mg; PROTEIN 17.5g; FIBER 1.9g