Food Friday - It's Eat Your Veggies Day!!

from Tracey G.

This week's recipes just kind of happened when Kris and I were talking food. I'd just sent her a text saying I seemed to be on a broccoli kick - which isn't a stretch since it's one of my all-time favorite vegetables. There really isn't a vegetable I don't like - the one exception that comes to mind is okra. I just can't do okra. Nope. Don't care, not my thing, I know lots of people who do like it and that's ok! I do not harbor any okra-eating prejudices at all!! It's just not for me...

But anyway, we got talking about broccoli, because I was going on how I like it because it's a great side dish to make in these days of watching what I'm eating, and it's one thing I don't have to worry about watching! Granted, my from-childhood way to eat it is (warm or cold, no matter to me) with red wine vinegar, olive oil and some salt. Bar none, that is my go-to way to eat it and cauliflower actually. (And it makes canned spinach and canned asparagus pretty yummy as well, I LOVED both as a kid because of it!) It even works in my mindful eating plan, since extra virgin olive oil packs a lot flavor even in the teensiest drizzle to give me that "comfort food" feel! 

But I was wanting something a little different for the heck of it. I'd made a yummy new recipe a couple weeks ago, "Asian Orange Beef". The sauce included fresh ginger, orange juice, hoisin sauce and soy sauce. I'd made broccoli to go along with it and discovered my broccoli tasted pretty darn good dipped in the extra sauce. That led me to today's recipe.  I found one to use as a jumping off point and then put my own spin on it. I also wanted a recipe I could use frozen broccoli with because it's certainly NOT broccoli season around here, and even when it is - the stuff in my stores is always terrible looking, so I depend a LOT on frozen broccoli florets, and that's what I wanted to work with!

Asian Inspired Broccoli

Serves 2 (feel free to double or triple etc)

3-4 cups frozen broccoli, thawed

1-2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp minced fresh ginger

1 tsp canola oil

1/4 cup water + 2 tbsp, divided

3 tsp hoisin sauce

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp grated lemon peel

1/8 - 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok. Add the broccoli, ginger and garlic, add the 1/4 cup water. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes, or until the broccoli is crisp tender and water cooks down to about half. Add the hoisin sauce and extra 2 tbsp water if needed. Cook and stir until broccoli is evenly coated. Before serving, toss with the 1 tsp of lemon juice (or you can add more to your taste, I just liked the "hint" of lemon flavor). Garnish with the lemon peel and red pepper flakes. 

from Kris B.

Broccoli!  I love broccoli!  Therefore writing a recipe with broccoli should be easy because it is my favorite green vegetable and we eat it all the time.  The problem is that when 
I make it as a dinner side, all I do is coat it in a little olive oil, sprinkle it with pepper and maybe a little salt or garlic salt and throw it in the oven to roast for 15-20 minutes.  If we are being fancy, I may grate a little fresh Parmesan cheese on the top right before serving.  That’s it.  And I feel like I could eat broccoli in ad infinitum prepared just like this.  The problem here is that basic roasted broccoli doesn’t seem like enough “recipe” for today’s post.  So, for my contribution this week, I actually turned to a searching for a new recipe, a new way to enjoy my favorite green vegetable.

I discovered lots of variations on the broccoli slaw theme.  I make and enjoy a few such recipes, but almost everyone has a favorite along these lines.  I also found a good number of recipes with broccoli and pasta or grains.  Again, they sounded good, but were nothing substantially different than I do myself.  And then I found today;s recipe.

I already said that I love broccoli.  Sweet potatoes are also a personal favorite.  And we all know how I feel about bread.  And a few nuts and a little spice and it should be good.  Nonetheless, I found myself hearing a mantra that I used to say to my children, “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.”  Just because I can make a spiced sweet potato spread, spread it on a piece of toast, and then top all of that with broccoli doesn’t necessarily mean that I should do that, or expect it to be good.  The clincher to me giving in and trying this recipe was that it calls for fresh basil. Last week Weber said to me that we needed to find something to do with basil because the basil plants in our garden are getting huge.  I considered that a sign and committed to giving this seemingly strange but potentially good combination a try.  The original recipe is from the February 2014 bon appetit.

The Spiced Sweet Potato and Roasted Broccoli Toast is relatively easy to make, especially because both the sweet potatoes and broccoli can be made up to three days in advance of serving, leaving just the toasting of the bread and assembling to be done at the point that you are ready to serve these.

We ate these as an afternoon snack.  They also make a would make a great appetizer or perhaps even lunch.  Weber said that they are quite filling.

I won’t deny that the combination is a little odd, but it is a good kind of odd.  And, these are a reasonably healthy food choice whether eaten as a snack, appetizer or as a meal.

INGREDIENTS

For the Mashed Sweet Potatoes

1 large sweet potato (approx. 12 oz.) peeled and cut into  1” cubes

1 red Thai chile (optional), halved, some seeds removed

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

For the Broccoli

1 Large head of broccoli, stems removed  and cut into large florets

6 TBS olive oil

2 TBS chopped raw pistachios

1 TBS (or more) lemon juice

1 TBS fresh basil, divided

1 TBS fresh mint, divided

4 slices of crusty  bread

Olive oil to coat bread

Flaky sea salt

Combine the sweet potato, chile, orange juice and 1 cup of water in a small saucepan; season with salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and then simmer until the sweet potato is very soft and the liquid has evaporated (20-25 minutes).  Remove from heat and mash.  Let cool slightly.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Toss broccoli and 2 TBS olive oil on a rimmed baking sheet; season with salt and pepper.  Roast until tender (15-20 minutes).  Let cool and then coarsely chop.

Meanwhile, brush both sides of the bread with olive oil.  Toast on a baking sheet until golden brown (6-8 minutes).  Toss broccoli, nuts, lemon juice, half of the basil and mint, and 4 TBS olive oil in a large bowl.  Season with salt and pepper.

Spread toasts with sweet potato, top with broccoli mixture and remaining basil and mint, and sprinkle with sea salt.  

Cut into pieces.

That is the recipe as it originally appeared.  Here are the changes that I made:

• I used sliced almonds instead of pistachios.
• I did not toss the broccoli with the extra 2 TBS of olive oil when combining it with the basil and mint.
• I added all of the basil and mint to the broccoli rather than saving some for garnish.  I still could have used more in the broccoli.
• I did not garnish with the salt or use as much salt during the preparation.
• If you want a little hot but don't have a Thai chile, toss a few red pepper flakes in with the broccoli rather than the sweet potatoes.

If you try this recipe, I'd love to know your thoughts - good, bad , or otherwise.

FOOD FRIDAY - Simple Pasta Salads

from Kris B.

I trust that I am not alone in having those nights where you wander through the kitchen looking in the fridge, rummaging through the pantry, and checking the spice cabinet hoping that there are some ingredients that will work together and magically become dinner.  If I am alone in this, please keep that fact to yourself!  Often these meals that I have scrounged together in desperation become some of my favorites.  This Tortellini Salad is one such creation.

As I recall, I had the three cheese tortellini and that sounded good for dinner, but didn't have the necessary ingredients to make a traditional pasta sauce.  I had broccoli that needed to be eaten.  Actually, I always have broccoli that needs to be eaten because it is my favorite green vegetable.  I am happy to eat it in, on, or with just about anything.  Because I was trying to come up with a meal rather than just a side of pasta, I wanted some meat to add to the tortellini and broccoli.  I had a few pieces of bacon that also were on the "need to eat soon" list.  I always have some kind of cheese on hand.  This particular night, Parmesan was the cheese of choice.  Throw a little red onion and some grape tomatoes into the mix and the dinner potential was becoming real.  Still, however, I had no sauce.

The easy solution would have been to pour some bottled salad dressing over the whole shebang and call it done.  All I had was Asian Sesame.  As much as I like that on certain salads, it didn't sound good with this.  I decided that I would start with a more or less traditional macaroni salad dressing and go from there.  

When all was said and done, this turned out to be really good.  This is probably because this salad contains most of my favorite food things.  It's filling but not too heavy, flexible, and better for you than some things!

INGREDIENTS
1 19 oz bag frozen three cheese tortellini
1/2 lb bacon
1 head of fresh broccoli, chopped into bite sized pieces
1/2 medium red onion, diced
1 cup grape tomatoes
1/4 cup finely grated fresh Parmesan cheese

For the Dressing
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 mayonnaise
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves minced garlic
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

Chop the broccoli and dice the onion.  Grate the Parmesan cheese.

Cut the bacon into pieces and cook it.  Remove the cooked back to a paper towel to drain and cool.  While the bacon cooks, cook the pasta according to the package directions.  In its last minute of cooking, drop the chopped broccoli into the pasta water.  This will cook it just slightly.  Drain the pasta and broccoli and let cool in a large bowl.

While the pasta cools, in a medium bowl whisk together all of the ingredients for the dressing.  I prefer the dressing to lightly coat rather than drench the other ingredients.  If you prefer a "wet" salad, you may want to double the dressing proportions. 

Once the pasta has cooled, add the bacon, onion, and Parmesan cheese to the pasta and broccoli.  Add the dressing and toss the salad until all of the ingredients are evenly coated.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.  As is the case with almost anything that has a dressing or sauce, allowing the ingredients to mingle for several hours makes for better flavor.

This recipe is simple and quite forgiving.  Don't have broccoli and tomatoes?  Add another vegetable.  Squash is nice.  Prefer different spices?  By all means, go for it.  Don't like cheese tortellini?  Substitute your favorite pasta.  Have some leftover ham fro Easter?  Use that instead of bacon.  Make it your own.  Create Your Favorites Tortellini Salad!

Some days my cooking and my photography are guided by the same principles - both need to be quick and easy.  I quickly made this salad for our lunches today and needed to get the photo done quickly as I was leaving the house at noon and wouldn't be home again until almost 10 pm.  During my time away from the house, and more importantly my computer, I did have a little down time.  I decided that I would take today's photo with my phone and do any necessary editing on my iPad.

I shot the photo of the pasta on our outdoor kitchen cement counter with the resident camera on my iPhone.  The concrete added just a little bit of texture to the frame.  I then added the text and a frame using the Rhonna Designs app and I was done.  

Sometimes I feel like relying solely on my phone and its editing apps are cheating somehow.  Then there are the days where I know that it is the responsible way to use what little time I have.  When I got to the end of the day, I had a decent meal and an acceptable photo so I consider my day a success. Lol!


from Tracey G

I love using Food Fridays as a reason to experiment and try new recipes. Probably not the best thing, because if it doesn't turn out I'm stuck with it and can only report that it was awful, lol. But I've, for the most part, yet to have that happen. I've ran into some difficulties in the execution of the recipe, but it's always something I know that another run-through would iron out. This one was rather humorous as I was trying to get it together. I mean, come on, how hard can a macaroni salad be - really!? Well, it helps if on the day you're making it you have all the ingredients in the proper amounts that you need. I miscalculated my mayo supply, thinking I had much more than I actually did, and ended up having to make a half a batch of it. Then, trying to get the pickle juice into the bowl, I tipped the jar a bit too far and spilled some all over my recipe and island, lol. I was not having a good day! But I must say, all the trials and tribulations were totally worth it, I absolutely loved this recipe! And it's another one of those you can customize to your tastes, very easily I might add too.

I discovered it in my newest Taste Of Home magazine as I was flipping through. I've been on the hunt for a new macaroni salad. I love the version with tuna and peas etc, but I was getting really bored with it, and just wanted something different. This is the first one that caught my eye, maybe because it reminded me of deviled egg ingredients to a certain extent or something. Not sure, but I am glad I gave it a try, it's wonderful in my opinion, and as I told Kris, I likely could have eaten the whole batch myself, lol.

Now, I have to be honest here, the original name is NOT "Grandma's Macaroni Salad", it's "Judy's Macaroni Salad". But, I don't know a Judy or even the Judy. And to be even more honest, I never knew any of my grandparents, my maternal grandmother passed away when I was 6 months and my other grandparents passed away well before I was born. So, I can't even say I knew WHAT my grandma's macaroni salad was like - but this is what I IMAGINE a grandma's macaroni salad would taste like. It seems like a nice vintage mac salad recipe that a grandma WOULD make, so that's my reasoning and I hope everyone and Judy will forgive me! I will include the link to the original recipe of course!  

It involves simple ingredients that I think are a great combination: Elbow macaroni, hardboiled eggs, cheddar cheese, sweet pickles, mayonnaise, sweet pickle juice, salt and pepper - extremely uncomplicated. That's probably why it works as well as it does.

So, here's the recipe:

Grandma's Macaroni Salad

courtesy of Taste Of Home as Judy's Macaroni Salad
Serves 12, 3/4 cup each

2 1/2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni

1 1/2 cups mayonnaise

1/4 cup sweet pickle juice

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 cup (4 oz.) shredded cheddar cheese

6 hard-cooked large eggs, chopped

6 sweet pickles, chopped

1) Cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain macaroni; rinse with cold water and drain well.

2) In a small** bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sweet pickle juice, salt and pepper. Stir in the cheese, eggs and pickles. Add macaroni; toss gently to coat. Refrigerate, covered, at least 2 hours or until chilled.

** The original recipe as I've put here, calls for  a "small" bowl - but I used a medium sized bowl as due to the fact after you mix the ingredients in it, you then toss in the macaroni and I don't see how a small bowl would work very well for that and mixing the ingredients all together! :-) 

Food Friday - Christmas Brunch

from Tracey G

I love this dish - and I'm sure most people have some kind of version of a "ring" in their bag of recipe tricks, lol. It uses the refrigerated crescent roll dough to make it pretty. My mom found this particular recipe years ago, and I know she's added a few tweaks here and there and I've even made my own on the fly with it. I discovered that what's written in my book is different from what she had written down, lol. So I made my version this time, but I know we've made hers more, lol. She called for shredded Colby Jack, I used shredded Swiss, so you can go with whichever you like - or change it up each time you make it. Sometimes ham and Swiss is what you after - so go for it, as I did!

 I also upped the Dijon mustard amount - I go by taste, so I start with the 2 tbsp called for and go from there. I think in this particular go, I added a couple more extra (could even have been 3 extra for a total of 5, lol) - I love the flavor it adds. It also calls for chopped/minced onion and since Harry is not a big fan, I used some onion powder (to taste). Although, since it has broccoli in it, my hopes of him eating it were dashed. But I did decide it would be good without the broccoli, lol.

The longest part of the recipe, for me is arranging the crescent roll dough in an even pinwheel - I'm so particular I arrange and rearrange more times than I can count so I can get if fairly even. You really don't have to be too particular because once it bakes it looks pretty anyway. ;-) It's also one of those recipes that tastes better the next day - so leftovers, if there are any, are really good if not better than the day before!

Broccoli Ham Ring

Preheat oven to 375°

2 - 8 oz. tubes refrigerated crescent roll dough

1 ½ c shredded Monterey Jack cheese with Colby (Colby Jack)

¼ lb fully-cooked ham, diced (1/2 c)

2 ¼ c finely chopped broccoli

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp Dijon mustard (more to taste)

1 tsp lemon juice

Unroll crescent roll dough and place triangles on 12” pizza pan (or large cookie sheet), forming a ring with pointed ends facing outer edge of pan and wide ends overlapping. Press wide ends together.

Combine remaining ingredients; spoon evenly over wide ends of rolls. Fold points over (towards center of pan) and tuck under wide ends (filling will be visible). Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

from Kris B.

First let me apologize for my uninspired photo of this week's recipe.   This poor shot has nothing to do with the fact that I am behind with everything and am not yet fully feeling the Christmas spirit.  It is much more traumatic than that!  My tripod, with camera attached, tipped over and my lens took the brunt of the fall.  Thankfully, despite the fact that for some reason I had taken my UV filter off of it, the glass didn't break.  The plastic ring around the edge, however, is another story.

I logged on to the Nikon website to see what the procedure was for sending it in for repair.  Surprisingly, it was an easy process, not often the case these days.  I was presented with a multiple choice menu from which to identify the nature of my problem.   #2 "Dropped or Impact Damage". I guess I am not the only unfortunate person to have such a problem.  Once all of the pertinent information was supplied,  I was given an estimate of the cost of repair.  Mind you, it is only an estimate; but, I had to provide payment information at that point in order to proceed.  The good news is that the estimate is a great deal less than the cost of replacing the lens.  The bad news is that this lens is the most expensive one that I own.  So after school this afternoon, I'll make my way to UPS with all those who are trying frantically to get holiday gifts shipped and send my lens on its way.  Hopefully it will not get lost in the Christmas rush!

Once Nikon receives the lens and assesses the damage first hand, they will send a specific cost of repair and I will again have an opportunity to decide how to proceed.   Until then, I will be forced to use some of the lenses in my bag that I haven't used much lately.  That is a good thing, I think.  I have been kind of lazy and have been relying on my "workhorse" lens rather than pushing myself to be a little more creative with some of my other options.  We'll see what happens...

Back to breakfast...

Despite what the photo looks like, this egg dish with a southwest touch is really good!  The recipe was given to me by a friend several years ago.  I believe she got it when she was working as a substitute innkeeper for a bed and breakfast.  I wish that back then I had been more diligent about making note of such details.

Because my older daughter is a vegetarian, our Christmas morning main course is always meatless.  (The rest of us have bacon or sausage on the side.).   And truthfully, the "protein dish" is never what anyone in my family looks forward to.  For the last ten years, said vegetarian daughter has made homemade cinnamon rolls by the dozens for Christmas morning.  (Leftovers are a must!). These are the part of the morning feast that we all anticipate!  But, I insist on something with protein during the morning to help mediate the sugar and caffeine high on which we all find ourselves.  Hyper adults on Christmas  are not nearly as cute as sugared up excited children. Lol!

INGREDIENTS

1 TBS olive oil

1/2 yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

12 corn tortillas, taco sized cut into pieces

2 4 oz. cans diced green chilies

2 Cups Mexican blend cheese

4 eggs

2 Cups buttermilk

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp oregano

Dash of cayenne pepper, to taste (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

I make this is an cast iron skillet, but it can be made in a 2 quart casserole dish as well.  Coat the pan or dish with non-stick cooking spray.

Sauté the onions and garlic in the olive oil until browned.

In the cooking pan, layer half of the tortillas, all of the onion mixture, half of the green chilies, and half of the cheese.  Continue layering with the remaining tortillas, chilies, and cheese.

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, and spices.  Pour the egg mixture over the layered ingredients.

Bake for 40 minutes.  Remove the pan from the oven and let rest for ten minutes.

This dish is good just like this, but can also be topped with sour cream, extra cheese, and/or diced fresh tomatoes.

I'm f you haven't yet settled on your Christmas morning menu, I hope you'll add this one to the list of contenders.

During this hectic and crazy time of year,  make sure to give yourself the gift of a few moments of peace in every day!

Food Friday - It's Easy Eating Green!

from Tracey G.

I'll be honest - it's been one of those weeks, lol. Being out of town last weekend, and not home until Monday really threw me off. I was a day behind from the start! Tuesday felt like Monday and so forth. And before I knew it Kris was asking what we wanted to do  - I thought she had a fabulous idea, could I work with it? I of course said sure because I knew I could, with what, I'd no idea, but I knew something would come to me, lol. And then it struck me that since a veggie was the superstar in her recipe, I'd use one too - and try to stay with the same color. It gave me a parameter to work within as it seems like lately I've needed that sort of structure. All the things going on with Harry  have sapped my brain of its creative spark, lol. So, yes, I could do a veg and ok, it has to be green. I can work with that! I have some definite things to focus on, no real thought required - if it's a vegetable and green, it's perfect! :-D LOL

It wasn't too much after that I remembered a broccoli dish my mom used to make, wonderfully easy and really yummy. Another thing Kris and I share, broccoli is a favorite! This recipe I imagine is really kid-friendly since it involves a cheesy topping on the broccoli, lol. Not that it mattered to me, even as a kid, I loved broccoli and I really ate just about any and all vegetables. I still can't do okra, and I know I've mentioned that before, and I don't ever see that changing, lol. But that's ok - there's so many other vegetables to choose from, I'm sure I don't even miss it. ;-)

I really don't know where my mom ever got this recipe, I just remember her making it, I can't say I remember the first time even, just seems like it'd always been in her repertoire, lol. And it always struck me as odd that there's no salt and/or pepper involved, and yet once it's cooked it doesn't need it. I imagine the natural saltiness of the cheddar covers the salt base, lol. ;-)

The green superstar - broccoli. Frozen broccoli at that! That makes this a great any time of year side dish, since frozen broccoli is always good! And you can use either florets (as I did) or just the usual broccoli cuts, which I've also done a time or two.

The cheeses are simply shredded cheddar and cottage...

...mixed in a bowl with one egg and 3 tablespoons of flour. 

Cook the broccoli according to the package directions and place it in a 9x13 pan. For my batch, since I'm the only one it seems who likes broccoli, I downsized the recipe to work in an 7x11" pan, which amounted to: 1.5 packages broccoli, 1.5 cups cottage cheese, 1.5 cups shredded cheddar. I stuck with the whole egg and 3 tbsp flour as the recipe calls for though. ;-)

Once you have the cheese mixture ready and the broccoli in the pan, you spread the cheese mixture evenly over the top.

Then you bake it for about 20-30 minutes in a 350° F oven. For some reason my batch took longer to get to where I wanted it, so I would say past the 30 minute mark it's "to taste" once it's set. I like the edges of the cheese topping a bit browned and crispy, lol. ;-)

That's all there is to it. I let it stand for a bit when it comes out of the oven, then serve.

Here's the recipe:

Cheese Broccoli

3 packages frozen broccoli, cooked and drained (there is not any designation on what exact size package of broccoli to use, I just use the "basic" size sold in my grocery store, which I think ranges from 10-14 ounces, and the package sizes I used today were 14oz)

2 c cottage cheese

2 c shredded cheddar cheese

1 egg

3 tbsp flour.

Mix cheeses, flour and egg in a bowl. Put broccoli in a 9x13" pan. Spread cheese mixture evenly over the top of broccoli. Bake 20-30 minutes at 350° F.

from Kris B.

This week's recipe was a favorite of my oldest when she was little.  I am thankful that my kids have always been fairly healthy eaters so getting them to eat vegetables has never been a problem.  I haven't made "green hash browns" in a long time, but with the warm weather produce starting to make its way to the farmer's markets and grocery store it seemed a good thing to have this week.  Bring on the zucchini!

I originally started making these as a side dish, but when Offspring #1 became a vegetarian, we would eat them as a meal unto themselves, kind of like zucchini pancakes.  That is how Weber and I ate this batch.  LOL!  The kid that inspired "green hash browns" was working the night that I made them so didn't get to indulge with us.  Looking back, that was probably poor planning on my part.  I did have some extra zucchini and these are easy to make.  And, she is now a grown-up and can maker her own dinner:-)

"Green Hash Browns" require a few fresh items - zucchini, onion, garlic, eggs, and Parmesan cheese - and a a few basic pantry items - flour, salt, pepper, and olive oil.

The first step is to grate the zucchini.  I have "a thing" for my box grater, so I usually grate by hand, but if your "thing" is for your food processor, by all means grate away that way.

This next part is the most important step!  Once the zucchini is grated, place it in a colander.  Mix in the salt. 

 Place the colander over the sink and let the zucchini and salt mixture sit for about ten minutes. This releases the moisture in the zucchini.  After ten minutes, place the zucchini in cheese cloth or a tea towel and squeeze out as much liquid as you can.  When you do this, what looked like a massive amount of shredded zucchini suddenly looks like a whole lot less.  Removing the excess liquid will make the "hash browns" crisp when they cook.  

INGREDIENTS

5 medium zucchini, grated (You should end up with 2-2 1/2 cups of zucchini once the excess liquid has been squeezed out.)

1 tsp salt

1/2 Cup flour

2 lightly beaten eggs

1/2 grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 diced onion

2 cloves of garlic, minced

Black pepper to taste

Olive oil for cooking

Prepare the zucchini as directed above.  In a medium bowl, combine the flour, eggs, cheese, onion, garlic, and seasoning.  Heat the olive oil in a heavy skillet.  Drop the zucchini mixture by large spoonfuls into the hot oil.  Flatten into a patty using a spatula.  Cook until the bottom is golden brown and then flip the patty to cook the other side. Cooking time is 2-3 minutes on each side depending on the moisture levels of the mixture. 

Serve immediately.  A dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of green onion on the top make a tasty final touch for these "green hash browns."

Oh, and because I am fascinated with photographing whisks, I leave you with this.

At least it's a whisk in its natural habitat!

Also, don't forget to leave us a comment at the end of this post so that you will have a chance to win the gift basket that we are giving away.  I wish that I could tell you what's in it, but I can't.  Not because I am mean and like secrets, but because my daughter is meaan and likes secrets.  Just kidding!  If you have no idea what I am talking about, scroll back and read the most recent Tuesday in Texas post.  It should clear everything up for you!