Zucchini and Cream Cheese Casserole

Name: Zucchini and Cream Cheese Casserole
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 6-8 small zucchini; 1 - 3 oz. pkg. cream cheese; 3 Tbsp butter; 1/4 tsp garlic powder; Salt and Pepper to taste; Butter Crackers

September 3, 2015 28 Comments

This is an old recipe that remains one of our favorites. Zucchini is mixed with garlic, cream cheese, and butter and topped with crumbs and baked. Yummy!

I’ve always grown my own zucchini for as long as I can remember but in the past couple of years I’ve cut way back on a big garden with veggies and now concentrate on growing a wide variety of herbs and some tomatoes in pots. That’s OK…it was getting to the point where at this time of year I did not want to see another zucchini!

My plan was foiled though when a neighbor brought me a bag of home grown zucchini, just fresh from her garden. I had already received two monster zucchini from another friend. Those I like to shred and freeze in two cup portions to use for zucchini bread in the winter; but for these perfect sized gifts I needed to reach no further than a tried and true recipe we have loved forever. Having a zucchini glut of your own? Try this easy side dish…perfect for a picnic too; it will be devoured, I promise.

This recipe is an oldie but goodie. It comes from a cookbook I love called ‘The Artist in the Kitchen’ from the St. Louis Art Museum and it was a fundraising cookbook published in 1977. I love old cookbooks but they would never pass muster today.

No big huge glamour shots of every dish grace the pages; your imagination has to come into play. Still, I love everything I’ve made from this book and this recipe is an all time favorite. I had forgotten that I had already shared it on my blog…but that was 5 years ago and we won’t even talk about the photo; it would have been better to have been like this cookbook and not had one!

The truth is that it’s sort of a plain Jane. There aren’t a lot of ingredients and it’s simple to put together; is it even worthy of sharing? Oh yeah…it’s that simplicity that helps to make it great; heck the topping of crumbs doesn’t even have any extra butter to bind them but you won’t mind.

There is something magical about a sauce of butter, cream cheese and garlic that fits so perfectly with what is really a pretty bland little veggie; the crumb topping is a nice added texture. I had to stop testing it after eating half the dish (kidding) (no I’m not).

It can be hard to photograph a casserole dish. As much as I love this simple dish, it’s not particularly beautiful. So I did throw some fresh from my garden tomatoes into the photo for a bit of color. I am not regretting planting those Early Girl tomatoes one bit even if they did get a late start.

I’ve planted nothing but cherry tomatoes since I started gardening in pots and this year thought I would try one more variety and I love the results; even with a late start they have been worth the wait. I must have picked a dozen last night…poor me I have to eat some with every meal. 🙂

Have a safe and fun filled Labor Day; I’ll be sitting here eating zucchini casserole, fresh corn, fresh tomatoes and fresh peaches and sobbing that summer is almost over. I won’t miss the heat but I sure will miss fresh fruits and veggies. Now I’m wishing I had planted some zucchini; I want more!

This is the last post of our #SummerSoiree series for the Food Network featuring dishes perfect for a Labor Day get together. I’m having one; I’m actually hosting a baby shower on Sunday; we’re sort of hoping there won’t be a real labor day until after the party! Have a great weekend; enjoy some of these dishes from my friends!

The Lemon Bowl: Lemon Garlic Chicken Kabobs
Bacon and Souffle: Roasted Shrimp Orzo
The Hungry Traveler: Ginger Vanilla Fruit Salad
Homemade Delish: Festive Champagne Punch
Dishin & Dishes: Savory Tomato, Roasted Garlic and Mozzarella Tart
Creative Culinary: Zucchini and Cream Cheese Casserole
TasteBook: Apple-Pecan Chicken Salad
Elephants and the Coconut Trees: Batter Fried Pepper with Tzatziki Sauce
Healthy Eats: 6 Fall-Forward Recipes for Your Labor Day Celebration
Domesticate Me: Lobster Avocado Toast
Taste with the Eyes: “Margarita” Salmon Burger with Tequila, Lime, and Hatch Chiles
Napa Farmhouse 1885: Grilled Shrimp & Peaches with Arugula Pesto
Red or Green: Spicy Greek Chickpea Spread
The Heritage Cook: Smoked Chicken Salad (Gluten-Free)
The Mom 100: Yogurt Berry Pops
FN Dish: The Last Hurrah: Grill Absolutely Everything on Labor Day

PIN IT! ‘Zucchini and Cream Cheese Casserole’

Yield: 6 Servings