"Muffins For Dinner?! YAY!"

I have so much to share about the goings' on of the last three weeks - but until I gather the pictures and the words to share the new stuff, here's a great idea for a yummy Summer dinner I made for The Gang.

Fair warning, I tweaked this from another recipe so it's not entirely original to me. I had four big zucchinis in the fridge that were graciously shared with me and one of them needed to be used immediately. So I washed it down, cut off the mushy ends, and slice it length-wise into four "spears." Then I de-seeded it and ran each spear through the food processor using the grating blade. A 14" long zucchini yielded about 3 1/2 cups of shredded zucchini.

Ham and Cheese Crust-less Zucchini Quiche

1 large, chopped onion
1/4 c. butter
2 cloves garlic, pressed
4-1/2 c. baking mix (Bisquick)
2 tsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
6 eggs
1/2 c. milk
3 c. shredded zucchini
1-2 c. chopped ham, to preference
3/4 c. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 c. parmesan, shredded (optional)

In large skillet, saute the onion and garlic in butter till soft and slightly golden. Add shredded zuke and continue to saute on lowered heat till the zuke has softened and is starting to release its juices. Set aside to cool slightly.

In large bowl, combine parsley, baking mix, parsley, basil, and thyme. Beat together the eggs and the milk and pour over dry ingredients. Lightly mix till just moistened. Add the zuke, ham, and cheese and finish mixing gently till all of it is incorporated. Don't over mix!

Pour into 2 generously sprayed deep dish pie plates, or 2 9x13's, or a deep 11x14. Bake at 400 for about 18-22 minutes until they are golden brown and have raised gently. They will be moist and dense inside but a knife inserted in the center should come out clean to be sure they are done.

This time around, I poured it all into 22 sprayed muffin cups. (Yes, I was just shy of the full 2 dozen but I liked that they were nice and high and full when they were done. It's a trade-off, I guess!) I used my Pampered Chef muffin stones and they turned out moist and lightly golden all around. Li'l Empress thought I was kidding when I told her we were having muffins for dinner and Mei Mei shocked me into tomorrow by downing 1 1/2 of them. She - of the great veggie boycott! We let them dip the bites into their choice of mustard and served it all with a side of salad and broccoli.

It's another healthy way to get some good veggies into your kids and they really are delicious.  I've got two really big ones zucchinis left and I'm getting a hankering for my other Summer Favorite. Anyone else have a good zucchini recipe - other than zucchini bread! - that they want to share? Share some of your favorites in the comments!