My great-grandma Mary was a great cook, avid gardener, and one smart lady. And on holidays my mom would pack us into the car and bring us to her house in Northern California.
Going to my great-grandma’s house, with its luscious garden and buzzing bees, was one of my favorite times of the year. I remember spending hours hovering around the adults cooking and chatting in the kitchen. The heavenly smell of turkey and ham would waft from the oven as we snacked on devilled eggs and other delicious appetizers.
Even leaving at the end of the day meant rainy drives home and street lights glowing in the warming car.
Grandma Mary’s sauerkraut and pickles were among some of my mom’s personal favorite recipes, but she experimented with recipes for casseroles and upside-down pizzas too.
She, like many grandmas, used charming (if ….dated) recipe cards to note down her recipes. This one was of course for zucchini stuffing casserole.
The original recipe reads as follows:
Bring to a boil in salted water 4 med. (2 lb) zucchini, diced. Drain well. Melt 4 tbsp butter + thoroughly mix with 1 pkg Seasonal Stuffing mix. Put 1/2 of this mixture into a large baking dish. Gently mix the drained zucchini with 2 med. shredded carrots, 2 med. onions, chopped; 1 c sour cream, 1 can cream of mushroom soup, 1 sm. can mushroom pieces, 1 sm. can chopped pimientos, drawined. Pour this over the stuffing mix in the pan + over top with the remaining stuffing mix. Gently press down. Bake uncovered 1 hr. at 350˚.
-Mary Winter
Optional: Add 2 tbsp chopped parsley.
Freezes well – good warmed over and surprisingly, men seem to like it.
Happy Munching!
I especially love the tidbit that men seem to enjoy this dish. While I can’t speak for men, it does appear to be a flavorsome recipe, especially with both stuffing and cream of mushroom soup in!
Although it seemed intriguing, it also felt a little heavy. So I felt compelled to make my own version! And even with a couple of minor updates, this hearty vegetable gratin was super filling and satisfying.
For my take, I decided to update the cooking method– switching boiling for sauteing. I also had to make some concessions like making the stuffing and cream of mushroom soup since I’m in Japan.
Luckily they were easier to make than I expected! This is the perfect meal or side for any dinner, and even makes a fantastic breakfast the next day.
Ingredients
- Zucchini
- Mirepoix
- onion
- carrot
- garlic
- Mirepoix
- Premade Ingredients
- Stuffing Mix (Or make your own)
- Cream of Mushroom Soup (Or make your own)
- Sour Cream
- Spices
- black pepper
- salt
- Shredded Cheese
Method
1. Preheat your oven to 350˚F. Now prepare your ingredients and tools. Since I’m making everything in one go, I prepare my homemade stuffing and cream of mushroom soup ingredients as well. See those recipes for a detailed explanation.
*If you’re making homemade stuffing and cream of mushroom soup, prepare both first.
2. If you have a box grater or shredder function on your food processor, use those for the carrots. I’ll be using a hand grater which is usually used for grating daikon or nagaimo (chinese yam).
3. Chop your zucchini into 1/2-inch cubes. Dice your onion, and shred the carrots. The carrots make a great addition for color. Add the zucchini and onions to a large pan on medium heat.
4. You can also add salt and pepper to taste at this stage.
5. While your veggies cook, prepare your pre-made stuffing mix.
6. Once your zucchini has softened, about 8 minutes, add in the sliced garlic and shredded carrot. Saute for another 2-3 minutes until fragrant. Remember to taste for seasoning
7. Time to layer your ingredients. Grease your ramekins or baking dish. Start with a base of the plain stuffing on the bottom. Press it in firmly.
8. Next, mix together the remaining stuffing with the cream of mushroom soup and sour cream. Layer on top of the stuffing.
9. On top, make a layer with your vegetable mix for maximum color and zestiness. (You can layer however you like, but the vegetables on top look the prettiest!)
10. Lastly, sprinkle the cheese in an even layer on top!
11. Put your baking dish or ramekins in the oven for 30 minutes or until bubbly and browned on top. If using a toaster oven, see instructions below.
Storage and Make-Ahead
You can make the components for this dish a day ahead if you like meal planning. After making the zucchini mixture and/or the stuffing and cream of mushroom soup, put them into containers in the fridge.
To heat, transfer the ingredients into a microwave-safe dish, and heat for around 2 minutes to warm through. Then layer them in your baking dish or ramekins. Bake for 30 minutes at 350˚F or follow the toaster oven directions below.
Cover your casserole pan with a lid or foil to store after baking. Transfer to the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Or freeze in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months.
Zucchini Stuffing Casserole Gratin
Equipment
- large pan
- oven or toaster oven
- ramekins or large baking dish
Ingredients
- 1/2 tsp olive oil sub: neutral oil
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup onion minced
- 2 medium zucchini
- 2 medium carrots shredded or grated
- 1 clove garlic sliced
- salt and pepper to taste
- homemade stuffing sub: stuffing mix
- 1 1/2 cup homemade cream of mushroom soup base sub: 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
- 1 cup sour cream sub: plain full-fat greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup shredded cheese
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350˚F.
- Add your olive oil to a large pan. Turn the burner on to medium heat.
- Then add your onions and zucchini with salt and pepper. Saute until softened, about 8 minutes.
- Add in the shredded carrot and sliced garlic. Saute for 2-3 more minutes.
- Grease your oven safe baking dish or ramekins.
- Add a thin layer of stuffing to the bottom of the dish(es). Then in a separate bowl, mix the remaining stuffing with the sour cream and cream of mushroom soup.
- If using a larger pan, make a layer of vegetables. Then spread the stuffing and mushroom mixture on top.
- Do a final layer of vegetables, then top with shredded cheese.
- Put your baking dish (or ramekins) into the oven for 8 minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden brown on top.
Notes
- Insert your ramekins 1-2 at a time into the toaster oven.
- Bake on 400 watts (low) for about 5 minutes. If your toaster heats on top, use foil to protect the cheese.
- Broil on 1000 watts (high) for 1 minute to brown the cheese.
