Roasted Chayote Or Roasted Mirliton Food

ROASTED CHAYOTE OR ROASTED MIRLITON

Steps:

• Preheat the oven at 375 degrees and line a large roasting pan with parchment paper.
• Wash chayote and thoroughly dry. Using a knife cut each chayote in half, remove the seed of each chayote and disregard. Cut the chayote halves in thin slices and put them in a large mixing bowl with the shallot or onion. Season with salt and pepper.
• In a small bowl, mix the oil with the dry seasoning. Depending on the size of the chayotes you will need to adjust the oil measurement. Pour oil mixture on chayote halves and make sure all slices are well coated. Do not oversaturate slices because they will be soggy.
• Carefully place the chayote halves onto the lined baking pan. Do not overcrowd the pan and leave enough space for proper roasting. If necessary use 2 pans.
• Roast for 40 minutes or until crisp and golden and be sure to turn over half way through. Remove from oven and serve immediately.
• Serve with your preferred main course.

MIRLITON (CHAYOTE) CASSEROLE

Steps:

• 1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the mirlitons and cook until tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Remove from the heat, drain, and set aside to cool completely.
• 2. Sprinkle ground beef, pork or sausage with 1 tablespoon creole seasoning and brown in heavy skillet. Drain and set aside.
• 3. When the mirlitons are cool, cut them in half lengthwise, remove the seeds, peel, and coarsely chop. Set aside.
• 4. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add the onions, bell peppers, carrots, celery, green onions and jalapeno. Add remaining creole seasoning and the thyme. Cook slowly, stirring, until the vegetables are soft and lightly golden, about 30 minutes.
• 5. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes. Add the mirlitons and cook, mashing them with a potato masher, until very tender and most of the liquid has evaporated, about 30 minutes.
• 6. At this point, if you want a smoother textured casserole use an immersion blender or put mixture into a food processor or blender in small batches until everything is pureed. If you like a chunkier casserole then skip this step.
• 7. Add the meats or seafood, salt, black pepper, and parsley. Cook about 3 to 4 minutes stirring frequently to prevent sticking. Remove from the heat.
• 8. Add the eggs and toasted bread crumbs and mix well. You want the mixture to be tight, not too wet. Spoon the mixture into a 9 by 13-inch casserole dish. Sprinkle with mozzarella or parmesan cheese (optional), or with about 1-2 tablespoons of bread crumbs.
• 9. Bake at 350 until the topping is lightly browned and bubbly, about 40 minutes. Serve warm.
• 10. *NOTES: In a skillet, toast the breadcrumbs in a little olive oil over medium heat until it turns 2 shades darker. This will keep the casserole from being gummy.
• 11. If you make extra toasted breadcrumbs you can freeze them in a ziplock bag until you're ready to use them again.

ROASTED CHAYOTES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F with racks in upper and lower thirds.
• Wearing protective gloves, halve chayotes lengthwise and discard seeds. Peel, then cut lengthwise into 1-inch wedges. Toss with oil and 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Divide between 2 large 4-sided sheet pans.
• Roast 45 minutes. Divide garlic between pans, then continue to roast, turning occasionally, until chayotes are golden brown on edges, about 10 - 15 minutes more. Season with salt.
• Cooks' note:
• Chayotes can be roasted 5 hours ahead and kept, loosely covered with foil, at room temperature. Reheat in a preheated 350°F oven (about 15 minutes).

ROASTED CHAYOTES WITH GARLIC

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F with racks in upper and lower thirds.
• Wearing protective gloves, halve chayotes lengthwise and discard seeds. Peel, then cut lengthwise into 1-inch wedges. Toss with oil and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Divide between 2 large 4-sided sheet pans.
• Roast 30 minutes. Divide garlic between pans, then continue to roast, turning occasionally, until chayotes are golden brown on edges, about 30 minutes more. Season with salt.

BAKED CHAYOTE SQUASH

Steps:

• Place the chayote into a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until very tender, 45 to 50 minutes. Drain and allow to steam dry for a minute or two.
• Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Remove the seed and seed membrane from the chayote using a spoon; discard. Scoop out as much of the remaining pulp as possible into a bowl without puncturing the shell. Pat the shell dry with a paper towel and place in a baking dish; set aside. Squeeze the excess water from the reserved pulp. Stir in the butter, egg, heavy cream, Parmesan cheese, and 2 tablespoons Cheddar cheese until well-blended. Fill each of the chayote shells with the pulp/cheese mixture. Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/4 cup Cheddar cheese on top, followed by the bread crumbs.
• Bake in the preheated oven until heated through and the cheese has melted, 35 to 45 minutes.