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ENTERTAINMENT

Hearty vegetable dishes for cold nights

Start the new year with lots of vegetables (you won’t miss the meat)

Bryn Mooth
Enquirer contributor
Mac and cheese with lots of green vegetables

As 2017 slides in, we’re all coming out of a period of indulgent eating and drinking: cocktail parties, family feasts, appetizers with friends. I’ll confess to eating more than my fair share of Gibbs Cheese & Sausages epic Christmas cheddar. Delicious food, all of it … and now I’m ready to return whole grains and vegetables to the center of my plate.

But, sheesh, it’s been cold outside, and it’s hardly the time of year for starvation diets of celery sticks and lemon water. As these two recipes suggest, there are plenty of ways to enjoy satisfying, comforting dishes that spotlight vegetables, grains and lower-fat dairy without feeling the slightest bit of deprivation.

Both of these hearty casseroles can be assembled ahead and baked before serving (return the casserole to room temperature before baking), and leftovers keep well in the fridge or freezer. They’re cheesy and tasty enough to appeal to those who’d turn their noses up at a vegetarian meal. Pair with a simple green salad and some crusty bread, and you’ve got a great centerpiece for Meatless Monday – or any frosty night of the week.

Bryn Mooth is the author of "The Findlay Market Cookbook" and the editor of Edible Ohio Valley; she shares recipes and kitchen tips at writes4food.com.

Butternut Squash & Wild Rice Bake

With a base of wild rice and a warm blanket of eggs and cheese, this easy casserole can take pretty much any vegetable you’d care to throw into it: spinach, diced zucchini, mushrooms, broccoli. Lightly steam the vegetables and chop them roughly before folding them into the ricotta-egg mixture.

Serves 6

3 cups cooked brown-wild rice blend

3 cups steamed diced butternut squash

1/2 cup chopped parsley

1 teaspoon dried herb blend (I like Colonel De's 'Simon & Garfunkel')

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 large onion, diced

3 large garlic cloves, sliced

1 cup part-skim ricotta

1/2 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt

2 large farm-fresh eggs

Pinch of ground nutmeg

1/2 cup grated Fontina cheese

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees; spray a medium-sized baking dish with cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine cooked rice, squash, parsley and herbs; season well with salt and pepper. In a small saucepan, warm the olive oil over medium-high heat until it shimmers; reduce heat to medium, add onion and cook, stirring often, until soft and translucent, about 7 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add onion and garlic to rice mixture; stir and let cool slightly. In a bowl, whisk together ricotta, Greek yogurt, eggs and nutmeg; whisk in a big pinch of salt and pepper. Add ricotta mixture to rice mixture and fold to combine thoroughly. Transfer to the prepared baking dish. Scatter grated Fontina and Parmesan evenly over the top. Bake 40 minutes, until casserole is bubbly; run it under the broiler to brown the cheese for the last 2 minutes or so if desired.

Mac and Cheese with Lots of Green Vegetables

Serves 4

1 heaping cup dried (whole-wheat or regular) elbow macaroni

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

Pinch red pepper flakes, or to taste

1 bunch or bag fresh spinach, washed, tough stems removed, coarsely chopped

1 large zucchini, grated

1/2 cup frozen peas

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1 1/4 cup shredded mild white cheese (mozzarella, Havarti, Swiss or a blend; use part-skim if you’d like)

1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups 2% milk

1/2 cup coarse breadcrumbs (panko or fresh)

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, or 1/2 teaspoon dried

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees; spray an 8- or 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray. In a colander, toss together the grated zucchini and 1/4 teaspoon salt; let sit for 15 minutes, then squeeze as much water out of the zucchini as you can. In a large sauté pan, heat olive oil until it shimmers; add garlic and red pepper flakes, cook 1 minute. Add drained zucchini, stir well and cook 1 minute, then add spinach. Stir vegetables and continue cooking until spinach is completely wilted, about 2 minutes; add peas and stir to combine. Transfer vegetables to a large bowl, season to taste with salt and pepper, and toss with lemon juice.

Cook pasta according to package directions, reducing cooking time by 1 minute (pasta will continue to cook in the oven). Drain and add to the bowl with the vegetables.

Wipe out your sauté pan, return to heat and melt butter until foamy; add flour and whisk to combine. Cook, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes, until the butter/flour mixture (called a roux) smells nutty and turns a deep blond color. Pour in a little of the milk and whisk to combine; it will seize up into a clumpy mess, but keep whisking. Continue adding milk a bit at a time, whisking the lumps out, until you've added all the milk. Bring to a boil and cook, whisking frequently, for about 3 minutes until the mixture thickens. Stir in the cheese and whisk well to melt and incorporate. Remove sauce from heat, add salt and pepper to taste.

Pour sauce into the pasta/vegetable mixture and stir to combine; transfer to the baking dish. Stir together thyme, breadcrumbs and Parmesan, and sprinkle over the dish. Bake 40–45 minutes, until the mac and cheese is piping hot. Run the pan under the broiler if needed to toast the breadcrumb topping.