Kay Wheeler Moore

Welcome to my blog

Hello. . .

The Newfangled Country Gardener is for anyone who has a garden, would like to have a garden, or who simply enjoys eating the garden-fresh way. I don't claim to be an expert; in this blog I'm simply sharing some of the experiences my husband and I have in preparing food that is home-grown.

About the author

Kay Wheeler Moore is the author of a new cookbook, Way Back in the Country Garden, that features six generations of recipes that call for ingredients that are fresh from the garden. With home gardening surging in popularity as frugal people become more resourceful, this recipe collection and the stories that accompany it ideally will inspire others to cook the garden-fresh way and to preserve their own family food stories as well. The stories in this book center around the Three Red-Haired Miller Girls (Kay's mother and aunts) who grew up in Delta County, TX, with their own backyard garden so lavish that they felt as though they were royalty after their Mama wielded her kitchen magic on all that was homegrown. Introduced in Kay's previous book, Way Back in the Country, the lively Miller Girls again draw readers into their growing-up world, in which a stringent economic era--not unlike today's tight times--saw people turn to the earth to put food on the table for their loved ones. The rollicking yarns (all with recipes attached) have love, family, and faith as common denominators and show how food evocatively bonds us to our life experiences.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

"Tastes like Thanksgiving!" No better compliment for Chicken Squash Casserole

Back to that fabulous new cookbook from Calvary Baptist Church in Little Rock. Still prowling through it I encountered a squash casserole that was different than any I’d ever seen (and I’ve been around the block a few times where squash casseroles are concerned.)

As its basic elements, this casserole combined squash, cornbread stuffing, and cubed chicken (new to me in a squash casserole). I already had in my possession a box of cornbread stuffing and a container of the chicken. With a brief trip (I should say, with Hubby’s brief trip) to the grocery produce section for a little fresh squash, I was in business.

Other than the small amount of time necessary for slicing the squash and chopping the small onion, this was an amazingly easy prep. Stir-ins of cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and seasonings completed the assemblage. I couldn’t resist sprinkling a little Cheddar cheese on top. I mean, to me, a squash casserole just doesn’t look right if it isn’t crowned with a smattering of orange. Only about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of cheese was all I added, but the effect was achieved.

“This tastes like Thanksgiving!” Hubby gushed when I plunked some Chicken Squash Casserole on a plate and set it before him last night. Genius! That’s the general idea. After all, ’tis the season. Another winner from Calvary Culinary Creations (and from this recipe’s contributor, Adrian Self).

Chicken Squash Casserole

2 pounds yellow squash, sliced
1 box cornbread stuffing mix
1 (10.5-ounce) can cream of chicken soup
8 ounces sour cream (I used fat-free)
1 small onion, chopped
2 cups cooked and cubed chicken
salt (or salt substitute) and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large saucepan cover squash and onion with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; cook until squash is tender. Drain. Stir in salt, pepper, soup, stuffing mix, chicken, and sour cream. Pour squash mixture into greased 2 1/2-quart casserole dish. Bake for 35 minutes. Serves 6.


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