Patty pan squash has such beautiful color, and bold contrasting patterns of dark green and bright yellow.  We cook the smaller, baby patty pans whole, but the large ones have radial lines that go from tip to tip and almost dare us to cut them using those lines as guides.

Like its cousins, zucchini and yellow squash, the mildly flavored patty pan squash is a type of Summer Squash. They pair well with a wide variety of herbs, spices, and other ingredients. In this recipe we roast the patty pans with our fresh sage, garlic, butter, extra virgin olive oil, capers, and juice of Meyer lemons that we received from our neighbors; so flavorful!

Preparation Time:  15 minutes

Cooking Time:  45 minutes

Serves:  4 as a main dish or more as a side

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs of patty pan squash (when using a large 9 inch by 11 inch baking dish)
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh sage (use 1 tbsp if using dried sage)
• 1 garlic clove sliced
• 3 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tbsp Meyer lemon juice (Florida Meyer lemon juice here)
  • Meyer lemons are slightly sweeter and less acidic than regular lemons so use 2 tbsp of juice from a regular lemon, and a pinch of sugar.
• 2 tbsp capers
• Kosher salt to taste
• Black pepper to taste

Preparation:

• Preheat the oven to 350F, place one rack on the middle level and another on the topmost level.
• Drizzle 1 tbsp of the olive oil into a large 9 inch by 11 inch baking dish, spread over the bottom of the dish; set aside.
• Wash the patty pan squash, cut off and discard the stem, slice into wedges using the radial lines that go from tip to tip as a guide, place into greased baking dish.
• Place the Meyer lemon juice, butter, olive oil, garlic, and capers into a small sauce pot or microwave-safe bowl, warm to just melt the butter; set aside.
• Wash and dry the sage, pick off leaves from thick stems, chop, add to the garlic, melted butter and olive oil, mix well, drizzle over the squash.
• Sprinkle a couple pinches of kosher salt and a couple turns of a black pepper mill over the squash.
• Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil.

Cooking:

• Place the covered baking dish into the preheated oven, cook for 40 minutes.
• Uncover, move to the topmost level, reset the oven to broil, and cook for another 5 minutes to just caramelize and add more flavor.