From food writer Lindsey Nair

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Zucchini Breakfast Casserole

Serves about 6

6-8 eggs

1 cup ricotta cheese

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

¹₄ tsp. Tabasco sauce or other hot chili sauce

1 tsp. salt

¹₄ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

3 cups grated zucchini (from 2-3 fresh zucchinis)

1 ¹₂ cups chopped tomatoes

¹₂ cup sliced fresh basil

4 cups cubed day-old bread (from about 4 slices)

Olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl beat the eggs. Add the ricotta and beat until smooth. Mix in the grated Parmesan cheese, Tabasco, salt and pepper.

2. Prepare the vegetables and bread. Once you chop the tomatoes, squeeze excess moisture out of them by pressing them in a sieve, or wrapping in paper towels and squeezing. Add the tomatoes, basil, and zucchini to the egg mixture. Moisten the bread cubes with a little water, then squeeze out any excess moisture using paper towels. Mix the bread cubes into the egg mixture.

3. Coat the bottom and sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish generously with olive oil. Pour the egg vegetable mixture into the baking pan and even it out in the pan. Place in the middle rack of the oven. Bake for 30 minutes. The casserole should puff up and brown lightly. If it hasn't after 30 minutes at 350, increase the heat to 425 degrees and cook for another 5-10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on a rack for 10 minutes before cutting into squares to serve.

-- www.simplyrecipes.com

Barbecue-braised bourbon beef with mustard glaze

For the beef:

2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme

2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary

2 tsp. sweet Hungarian paprika

1 tsp. dry mustard

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 (4 lb.) boneless beef chuck roast

For the braising liquid:

2 to 2-¹₂ cups lower-salt chicken broth

¹₂ cup bourbon

1 Tbsp. coarse-grain Dijon mustard

2 tsp. unsulphured molasses

2 large yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced (about 4 cups)

4 medium cloves garlic, peeled

For the glaze:

2 Tbsp. smooth Dijon mustard

2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary

1. In a small bowl, combine the thyme, rosemary, paprika, dry mustard, and 2 tsp. each salt and pepper. Sprinkle the spice blend all over the roast. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours but preferably overnight.

2. Prepare a gas grill for direct grilling over medium heat. Grill the roast until nicely browned on all sides, 4 to 6 minutes per side. Let cool briefly and then tie the roast with several loops of butcher's twine. Put the roast in an 8-quart heavy-duty pot.

3. Prepare the grill for indirect grilling. In a small bowl, whisk ¹₂ cup of the chicken broth with the bourbon, mustard, and molasses and pour the mixture over the meat. Scatter the onions and garlic on top of the meat; it's fine if some fall off. Put the pot on the grill over the cool zone. Cover the pot, close the grill lid, and cook for 1 hour (see note).

Uncover the pot and turn the roast over so the onions are now on the bottom. Check the liquid level in the pot and add broth as necessary until there's about an inch of liquid in the pot. Continue to cook, pot uncovered, grill lid closed, for 1 hour, stirring the onions and checking the liquid level every 20 minutes and adding broth as needed to maintain about an inch of liquid.

Replace the lid on the pot and continue to cook the meat until fork-tender, about 1 hour more, checking after 30 minutes and adding more broth as needed to maintain 1 inch of liquid. Move the meat to a tray and pat dry. Pour the onions and juices into a heatproof vessel, such as a Pyrex measuring cup, and let sit until the fat rises to the top. Skim off and discard the fat. Keep warm.

4. Prepare the grill for direct grilling over medium heat. In a food processor, puree ¹₄ cup of the onion mixture with the mustard and rosemary. Brush about half of the glaze on one side of the meat and put the meat on the grill, glaze side down. Brush the top of the roast with the remaining glaze. When the glaze turns brown on the bottom, after 2 to 3 minutes, flip and brown the other side, an additional 2 to 3 minutes. To serve, remove the string and slice the meat into ¹₂-inch-thick slices. Ladle the onion mixture over the meat and serve.

NOTE: I didn't feel like burning up all of my grill gas, so I did the braising step in a 325-degree oven. The roast turned out just fine. -- L.N.

Lemon-vodka cream pops

Makes 8 pops

3 or 4 medium lemons

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup whole milk

¹₂ cup granulated sugar

¹₈ tsp. table salt

2 Tbsp. Citron vodka

8 Popsicle sticks

Using a vegetable peeler, remove all of the zest from 3 of the lemons in 3- to 4-inch-long strips. Set the lemons aside.

Combine the lemon zest, cream, milk, sugar, and salt in a large saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Let steep at room temperature, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes.

Squeeze ²₃ cup juice from the reserved lemons (juice the fourth lemon, if necessary). Stirring constantly, pour the lemon juice into the cream mixture in a slow stream. Stir in the vodka.

Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a 4-cup glass measure (or any container with a spout for easy pouring), pressing on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible.

Divide the mixture among eight 3-oz. pop molds or wax-lined paper cups. Freeze until just barely set, 5 to 6 hours. Insert Popsicle sticks and freeze until completely set, about 2 hours more. When ready to serve, unmold or peel off the paper cups.

Beef and Popsicle recipes from Fine Cooking magazine; www.finecooking.com.