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June> Special ANNUAL ENROLLMENT Edition for UT System for Retirees >Healthy Recipes of the Month

Healthy Recipes of the Month

A favorite summer veggie recipe.
Shared by: Charlotte A. Burrell, UT MD Anderson

With summer here and all these beautiful fresh vegetables available, I get excited about making fresh veggie dishes.  I am sure that, by now, you have heard of “Calabasitas”, which means “little squashes”—a Mexican dish using squash, fresh corn, and ripe tomatoes.  It was a favorite of mine growing up and I have served it with great success to “squash haters”, if you can believe that.  Here is my version below.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.  I recommend that you do not take any shortcuts but make it the traditional way—it tastes just so much better!

My Mother’s Calabasitas

• 2-3 medium yellow squash, cut lengthwise and diced
• 2-3 small zucchini squash or 1-2 traditional green Mexican calabasas, cut lengthwise, diced
• 1 large ripe red tomato, peeled, seeded and diced small
• 2 ears of fresh sweet corn, kernels removed
• 1 cup of grated Monterrey Jack cheese

Layer the prepared vegetables in a saucepan in this order: Corn, yellow squash, zucchini squash, tomato

Sprinkle with salt and add about 2 Tablespoons of water.  Cover and place over low heat to “sweat” the vegetables.  In about 15-20 minutes, the squash will begin to produce liquid and you can turn the heat up to medium low.  Steam the veggies until the squash is tender when pierced with a fork.  Do not stir mixture.  When it is done, pour the mixture into a casserole, sprinkle the cheese evenly over the hot vegetables and cover until the cheese is melted.  It makes a mild, sweet side dish to serve with grilled chicken or pork loin. 

Source: Charlotte A. Burrell, UT MD Anderson

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