The autumnal equinox may have already passed, but there is still great summer produce to be had.
With a handful of easy-to-find ingredients, you can have yourself a great veggie bake. But like the changing seasons, timing is everything with this recipe. It’s not at all finicky, but since many vegetables cook at different times you must pay attention to the order and way in which you add them. Don’t worry! It’s all easy.
I originally found this recipe in my grandmother’s recipe box, but I’ve made quite a few changes from the original. For example:
- Ingredient swaps: I changed the original green bell peppers — which taste like dirt to me — to sweet red ones
- Proportion changes: I doubled some vegetables, as well as the breadcrumbs and cheese
- Simplified technique: I more clearly explained the directions and shortened some steps
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Zucchini, Red Pepper and Tomato Bake
Ingredients
- 4 cups diced zucchini (3/4 inch, or 1 1/2 cm dice); about 3-4 zucchinis
- 3-4 tomatoes, each cut into 8 wedges (core, but leave seeds)
- 1 cup diced red or orange bell pepper (1/2 inch, or 1 cm dice); about one medium pepper
- 1 cup diced yellow onion (1/2 inch, or 1 cm dice); about one medium onion
- 1 cup fresh bread crumbs
- 1 cup grated meltable cheese (e.g., provolone, jack, gouda, swiss, cheddar)
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt (not iodized table salt)
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Pre-heat the oven to 375F (190C) with the rack in the center
- Butter an 8 X 8 baking dish
- In a saucepan over medium heat, add olive oil and butter. Add diced onions, red pepper and salt and pepper. Sauté until softened and translucent (about 7-8 minutes). Let cool
- In a large bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, diced zucchini. Mix well
- Once cooled, add the onions and red pepper to the bowl with zucchini. Mix well and transfer to the buttered baking dish. Smooth out the top
- First bake: Bake uncovered for 25 minutes. Carefully remove the dish from the oven and in neat rows, add the tomato wedges
- Second bake: Bake for an additional 20 minutes
- Third bake: Carefully remove the dish from the oven and sprinkle the cup of cheese over the top of the tomatoes. Return to the oven just long enough to melt the cheese (about 2-3 minutes). Use a slotted spoon to serve
Greg Nelson Cooks 
As luck would have it, I bought zucchini today and when I saw this recipe posted, I knew instantly that I was going to make this recipe. i still had an abundance of tomatoes from our garden and I had all the other ingredients. It was a delicious dish and I look forward to enjoying the leftovers. Thanks Greg for another recipe that will become part of our dinner rotation.
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So glad you liked it! I think it’s even better the next day reheated in the oven as leftovers.
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