The Black Eyed Pea is a chain of restaurants featuring home-style cooking. There are no black-eyed peas in this yellow squash casserole recipe. It is buttery yellow summer squash and onions topped with breadcrumbs.
Classic home-style comfort food is hearty, filling, and tastes delicious to boot! That about sums up this Ritz Cracker Yellow Squash Casserole from The Black Eyed Pea restaurant’s menu. This wonderful side dish is slightly sweet and has a crispy cracker crust that encourages even the pickiest kids to try it. The casserole pairs well with chicken or turkey and is impressive enough for a holiday to get together, yet easy enough for a midweek meal.
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What is Yellow Squash?
Squash is confusing. There are so many different types, and some markets sell them under similar, or even the same, name. For this Baked Yellow Squash Casserole recipe, you need to buy the squash that looks like the yellow version of zucchini. In fact, you may even see them marketed as yellow zucchini in your local store.
If you can’t find yellow squash or just happen to have a lot of regular, green zucchinis on hand, feel free to use them in addition to or instead of yellow squash.
How to Select the Best Yellow Squash or Zucchini
When there are so few ingredients in a recipe, each has a more extensive influence on how the dish turns out. If you don’t use yellow squash regularly, finding good ones can be a bit of a problem. You can use these hints to help:
- The best yellow squashes for this dish are small and tender tend to be sweet. Ones that are longer than 6 inches taste milder and are a better choice for recipes that don’t focus exclusively on squash.
- Look for a yellow squash without any nicks or scratches. Any naturally occurring bumps that you find are okay and won’t affect the flavor of your dish.
- Firm and dense is ideal. If you pick up a yellow squash and it’s surprisingly heavier than you expected, you are holding a high-quality vegetable in your hand.
- Before buying a squash, take a look at both ends. Hard, cracking ends indicate the farmer harvested it too late. Put it back and choose another one.
Tips for Making and Reheating a Ritz Cracker Yellow Squash Casserole
- Avoid overcooking the squash. Don’t keep the water boiling throughout the entire cooking process. Add the squash to cold water and rapidly bring the water to a hard boil before immediately turning down the temperature to a simmer. Remove the squash from the pot when the pieces are fork-tender, approximately 8 – 10 minutes.
- Mash carefully. Use a potato masher or the back of a serving fork to break up the squash lightly. You aren’t trying for the smoothness of mashed potato, but rather the consistency of smashed potatoes.
- Reheat in the oven. One of the best parts of this casserole is the crusty topping, and warming up leftovers in the microwave results in soggy cracker crumbs. Instead, take the Yellow Squash Casserole out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature while preheating your oven to 325 degrees. Cover the casserole with aluminum foil and put it in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes.
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Ingredients
Here’s a list of what you need:
- Yellow Squash
- Eggs
- Breadcrumbs
- Butter
- Sugar
- Onion
- Black Pepper
How to Make Yellow Squash Casserole
- Cut tips off the squash and cut each squash into pieces.
- Place squash into a large saucepan with enough water to cover.
- Bring to a boil then reduce heat and cook until tender.
- Drain squash in colander and mash. Return squash to the pan.
- Add beaten eggs, breadcrumbs, butter, sugar, salt, onion, and pepper. Stir to combine.
- Place mixture into a greased casserole dish.
- Sprinkle a light layer of breadcrumbs on top.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned.
This tasty baked yellow squash casserole goes great with ham, roast beef, fried chicken, and turkey.
Favorite Side Dish Recipes
- Cooked Carrots
- Crockpot Cheesy Potatoes
- Fried Mush
- Green Bean Bundles
- Homemade Coleslaw
- How to Cook Black Beans
- Purple Potatoes
- Roasted Red Potatoes
- Steamed Green Beans
Popular Casserole Recipes
- Broccoli Cheese Rice Casserole
- Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole
- Chili Relleno Casserole
- Tater Tot Casserole with Ground Beef
Check out more of my easy vegetable side dish recipes and the best casserole recipes here on CopyKat!
Yellow Squash Casserole from the Black Eyed Pea Restaurant
Ingredients
- 5 pounds yellow squash
- 2 eggs beaten
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- 4 ounces butter
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons onion chopped
- 1 dash black pepper
Instructions
- Cut tips off the squash and cut each squash into 3 or 4 pieces.
- Place squash into a large saucepan with enough water to cover.
- Bring to a boil then reduce heat and cook until tender.
- Drain in colander and mash. Return squash to the pan.
- Add beaten eggs, 1 cup breadcrumbs, butter, sugar, salt, onion, and pepper. Stir to combine.
- Spread mixture in a 3-quart casserole that has been lightly sprayed with a nonstick spray.
- Cover top with a light layer of breadcrumbs.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned.
MEHcooker
Would it be possible to use yellow squash and zucchini to get to the 5 pounds?
Stephanie Manley
Absolutely, it won’t be a copycat, but it will still work!
Sissy
I have never been in a Blackeyed Pea but one our local restaurants serves it. I absolutely love it and this seems to be the same except it needs more butter and sugar than this recipe calls for.
Barb Hyman
i usually make a typical southern squash casserole with sour cream, cheese, etc. I decided to try this one this year and like it much better! It is delicious. It seemed to taste better too as the flavors meld when reheated.
Stephanie Manley
I am so glad you liked it!
Jane Pate
The Black Eyed Pea closed here in Tyler. Tx quite a few years ago. Now Cotton Patch is located where BEP used to be and serve the same squash as BEP did. So good. I have tried to make it before from another recipe and it was close but not quite the same. I will compare it to this one and make it again but not with the 5 lbs of squash.
Stephanie Manley
Cotton Patch is excellent, I wished I lived closer to one.
PATRICIA
Can you prep this recipe ahead and later
Stephanie Manley
I would not, I think the topping may get soft.
susan payer
Black eyed pea hasn’t gone anywhere!
Stephanie
Many of them closed in Houston.
Carole Hanna
The Black-Eyed Pea restaurants in Memphis have all closed. I sure miss them.
indrag13
5 pounds of squash??? But it’s just me living in a single household,
Stephanie Manley
We might want to cut that recipe into 1/4 of the original.
indrag13
Hi Stephanie, lol, yes, you are right, that’s what I usually have to do with every recipe. Thank you!
Stephanie Manley
I do a lot of that too!
indrag13
Stephanie, that’s a great pic of you, I have to tell you I think you look so gorgeous! Your smile radiates sunshine!
Stephanie Manley
Thank you very much.
Wildbill
please let e see the reciepe for meatloaf like the Blackeyed Pea restaurant makes
Mmmendic
Please Meatloaf recipe from Black Eye Pea
Amy
A lady at our office made it for our Thankgiving luncheon. It was delicious!!
Jennifer
I tried this recipe last night and it was very close to the Black eyed peas. My boyfriend loved it although he had not tried it at the resturant