POTATO AND ZUCCHINI CASSEROLE

This casserole recipe was delicious. The ‘base’ recipe of potatoes, tomatoes and onions could be used as your ‘palette’ to layer in any other vegetables you like. The homemade cheesy tomato sauce brought all the other flavors together nicely. Hint: make this a day ahead because it’s always better the next day!

Serves 6-8

Prep time: 20 minutes plus cashew soaking time

Cook time: 1 hour

Ingredients

  • 2 medium sweet onions
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 2 medium zucchini
  • 2 medium summer (yellow) squash
  • 2 large baking or four medium yukon gold potatoes
  • 2 large heirloom tomatoes
  • 1 can no salt, fire-roasted or seasoned diced tomatoes
  • 1 cup raw, unsalted cashews
  • 2 tsp. thyme
  • 2 tsp. basil
  • S & P to taste
  • 2 Tbls. nutritional yeast

Optional vegetables that work well together with your casserole base of potatoes, onions and tomatoes:

  • butternut squash and eggplant
  • mushrooms, zucchini and summer squash

Instructions

  1. Soak cashews in enough water to completely cover them and leave in fridge overnight.
  2. After soaking, drain the water and combine the cashews with the can of drained tomatoes and nutritional yeast in a high speed blender and process until smooth . Add some of the reserved tomato juice if necessary to achieve a creamy consistency.
  3. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Finely dice the onion and mince the garlic. Water sauté the onions in a skillet until softened (about 5 minutes) then add the garlic for another 1-2 minutes.
  4. While the onion and garlic are sauteing, thinly slice the rest of the vegetables. Slice them into the same shape. I used my new KitchenAid Architect Series food processor (love it), but you could also use a mandolin or even slice by hand (try to get them to be as close to the same thickness as possible).
  5. Spray the inside of a large rectangle or oblong baking casserole dish with non-stick spray. Spread 1/2 cup of the sauce on the bottom of the dish. Next, layer the the softened onion and garlic. Add a layer of potatoes, then a layer of the thinly sliced vegetables. Sprinkle generously thyme and basil; salt and pepper to taste.
  6. Pour another 1/2 cup of your sauce over the top and repeat the layers 2 more times, ending with potatoes on top, and the rest of the sauce.
  7. Cover the dish with foil and lay heavy plates on top to push all the potatoes and veggies into a more compact casserole. Let sit for 30 minutes.
  8. Pop in your preheated oven and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 15-20 minutes or until the top turns golden brown.