Too many cukes? Try baking them in cheese sauce

Cucumber casserole is an unusual way to use your extra
 cucumbers. 
(Photo: Debbie Arrington)
Recipe: Creamy cucumber casserole is a surprising side dish

By Debbie Arrington

What to do with too many cucumbers? 

That's a dilemma many gardeners face in late summer. Like zucchini, cukes tend to come in bunches (no surprise, since they're both members of the gourd family). Not all cukes make great pickles. It can take a lot of salads to use up two or three pounds of fresh cukes.

My solution? Cook them in a casserole. 

When cooked, cucumbers retain much of their natural crispness. Combined with creamy cheese sauce and toasted bread crumbs, it makes for an interesting mix of textures -- and a conversation starter. (Cucumber casserole? Who knew?)

This is a variation of a recipe from my grandmother, another gardening cook who also loved to shop the farmers markets.

Over the years, I've tried all sorts of slicing cucumbers in this dish: Common green, English, round, lemon, Armenian and more. They all work. The Armenian and round varieties, which are actually more melon than cuke, tend to be sweeter and never bitter.

To avoid bitterness found in other varieties, always choose plump, well hydrated cucumbers. (Like squash, pick cucumbers while young for best flavor.) 

Slice off both ends first, then peel. (The enzymes that cause cucumbers to taste bitter tend to be concentrated in both ends and the peel.) If seeds are large or mature, scoop them out and use only the firm flesh.

Cucumber casserole
Serves 6

Ingredients:
4 cups diced cucumber (about 6 cucumbers)
Salt
1/2 medium onion, chopped
4 tablespoons butter (divided)
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup grated Monterey jack cheese
3 slices bread, toasted with crusts removed
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Peel and seed cucumbers. Dice cucumber flesh into 1/2-inch cubes. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil; add cucumber and adjust heat. Parboil diced cucumber for 10 minutes. Drain.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Saute chopped onion until soft. Remove onion from pan and set aside. Melt remaining butter in the saucepan. Stir in flour until bubbly. Gradually stir in milk; add salt. Cook until thickened, stirring often. Remove from heat. Stir in grated cheese until melted.

Toast bread. Process toast in food processor to make crumbs.

Butter a 9-inch square baking dish or a deep 8-inch round casserole. Put a thin layer of bread crumbs on the bottom of the casserole. Fold drained cucumber into cheese sauce. Spoon cucumber mixture into casserole. Top with remaining bread crumbs. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 1 hour in 350-degree oven. (Cover top loosely with foil if bread crumbs start to turn too brown.) Let sit about 10 minutes before serving.



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