Basic Vegetable Casserole Made Simple


Defined Tag: Vegetable Casserole.

My mom used to call vegetable casserole 'the leftovers dish' because it was so easy to combine leftovers into a completely different--and tasty!--dish that even my picky little sister, who hated having the same thing twice in a row, wouldn't balk at. The key to a vegetable casserole, at least in our house, was always the cheese. You could get away with a lot, if you just added cheese.

I really can't think of any vegetable that you couldn't use in a vegetable casserole, but there are some that are more popular than others; green beans, for example, or peas, or potatoes. In the end, though, it isn't the vegetables that make it a casserole; it's the cheese, the bread crumbs, the butter, and (of course!) the slow baking at a low temperature in the oven until golden-brown and bubbly. Who could resist something like that?

To make this most basic of vegetable casserole, look in your refrigerator. Find all the leftover vegetables you have, and put them in order on your counter. (If you're one of those people who doesn't keep leftovers, take four or five of your favorite vegetables, steam them, and set them in order on your counter.) Begin your casserole with a little melted butter at the bottom of an oven-safe dish with a fitting lid. Next, layer vegetables and cheese in the dish. Top the layered vegetable and cheese with breadcrumbs. Top the breadcrumbs with more shredded cheese. Then top the shredded cheese with little dollops of butter. Bake in the oven at 300 degrees until the top is golden brown and bubbly. Take it out, let it cool just a moment or two, then serve it just as you would lasagna.

It really is as simple as that. Of course, you can get as fancy as you like. Add different meats, spices, seasonings, pastas, and other goodies to make it different every time you prepare it, if you like. Those are all good additions--but they aren't necessary. No wonder vegetable casserole was always one of mom's favorite meals when I was growing up!