Ingredients:
4 medium pattypan squash, sliced into 1/8- 1/4-inch rounds
1/2 white onion, sliced into 1/2-inch half-moons
3 eggs
1/4 (loose) cup chiffonade’d* basil
1 1/2 tablespoons milk
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
12 saltines, crumbled
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9-inch pie plate. Layer the squash and onion in single layers starting and ending with squash. Set aside.

In a small bowl, beat together the eggs, basil, milk, salt and pepper until fluffy. Pour over the squash.

In a small bowl, stir together the saltines and butter until the crackers are well coated. Sprinkle an even layer over the squash. Bake 45 minutes or until the squash is tender.

* I used my herb scissors and cut from the leaf directly into the beaten eggs

My thoughts:

I think pattypan (also known as “scallop squash’) is my favorite summer squash. It is certainly the cutest. I like how it doesn’t need to be peeled and the seeds to flesh ratio is perfect; small seeds, lots of flesh. It doesn’t give off a lot of liquid which makes it perfect for casserole-like dishes similar to this one, there is no pool of water at the bottom of the pan like what can happen with undrained zucchini. This dish super light, the egg keeps it from being just a pile of squash hanging out all dry in a pan but it doesn’t add a lot of bulk to the dish.