Gabriel’s squash casserole

Gabriel Pryce, head chef at Rita’s
 
Rita’s in Soho, headed by Gabriel and Missy, is a restaurant where modern American dining meets seasonal offerings. Their menu has included Flourish-grown flowers, salad and vegetables for the past year.
 

Squash casserole is a real Southern staple this time of year, often made with yellow squash
but this recipe can be made with any summer squash, zucchini, courgette, pattypan or marrow. Whatever you’ve got to hand.
 
It’s always been on my radar but I stole some (most) off Missy’s plate at a meat and three in
South Carolina recently and it’s pretty stuck in my brain ever since.
 
Traditionally it’s a side dish but it would go really well with a salad as a perfect lunch. It’s versatile. It’s not the lightest of dishes, but it’s super fresh and if you want to moderate it a little, you can definitely reduce the amount of cheese in it. Or try and eat less of it!
 
Ingredients
 
1kg courgette/squash, sliced 3mm thick
1 large onion, sliced
4 tbsp unsalted butter
2 large eggs
120g grated cheddar cheese (a really good quality one, like Montgomery)
230ml milk
½ tsp cayenne pepper
½ tsp maldon salt
½ tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp fennel seed
100g breadcrumbs
1 tbsp olive oil
 
Method:
 
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Add half the butter to a sauté pan that will fit the onions and the squash over a medium heat and soften the onions gently until starting to brown ever so slightly. Add the sliced squash and continue to cook until tender.
 
Transfer the onions and squash to a colander and drain any liquid. In a large bowl whisk the milk, eggs and grated cheese, the cayenne pepper, salt and pepper. Melt the remaining butter and add to the mix. Fold the squash and onions into the spiced egg mixture.
 
Pour the casserole mixture into a baking dish or casserole and top with breadcrumbs
and fennel seeds. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for 50 minutes or until the casserole
is golden brown with a very slight jiggle in the middle.
 
Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before serving either as a side
dish or with a lovely herby salad with lots of radishes and cucumbers and a bright
summery dressing.