Name: Zucchini Squash Strata
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 135 min
Yield: 8 to 10 servings

Joanna Gaines is the co-founder of Magnolia, a home and lifestyle brand, a bestselling author, and editor-in-chief of Magnolia Journal. Alongside her passion for design and food, nothing inspires Jo more than time at home with family—messing with recipes in the kitchen or planting something in the garden.

Joanna Gaines

I could eat this vegetable strata every week and never tire of it. The layer of bread at the bottom of the dish soaks up the cheese blend while it bakes, so that each slice is full of many delicious flavors. I like to bring this to a weekend brunch or potluck because it’s one of those unexpected dishes that inevitably ends up being devoured well before any of the usual favorites.

Zucchini Squash Strata

Meet The Creator

One of the great things about living on a farm is that we always have a surplus of fresh eggs in the barn. Gathering these colorful beauties never gets old. Our family eats fresh eggs at almost every breakfast, so I’ve got to change things up for them every now and then. Quiche is simple to make and tastes so good—plus it uses up a lot of eggs—so I have a bunch of great recipes for it. I love its versatility and the fact that it surpasses the sum of its parts. Whether it’s served at an elegant brunch or at the breakfast table, a beautiful quiche makes the moment seem a bit more celebratory. Depending on how much time I have, I either make my own pie crust or use a store-bought one.

Photograph by Carson Downing. Produced by Scott J. Johnson. Styling by Billy Jack Brawner. Food Styling by Charles Worthington.

Mushroom, Spinach & Swiss Cheese Quiche

I had a version of this citrus guacamole at a restaurant that is no longer open, and it was so delicious that I created my own version. The pop of citrus in your mouth is unexpected and pairs beautifully with the rich butteriness of avocados. The flavors keep building as you eat it. You can use oranges, grapefruits, or whatever your favorite citrus fruit is! I’m sure you’ll love this recipe so much it will become your go-to guac recipe.

Citrus Guacamole

I love a one-pot meal that also feels extra-special, and paella makes that kind of meal. This Spanish dish of rice, vegetables and meat or seafood packs flavor and simplicity into one skillet. A large pan of paella is festive, colorful and serves a crowd — it’s just right for a celebratory dinner with friends and family. Making the vegetable-and-aromatic sofrito is a key step in cooking paella and acts as the dish’s flavor base. I like a combination of mussels, shrimp and lobster tails in the seafood version of the dish, but you can easily tailor it to your favorite types of seafood.

Elizabeth Poett's Seafood and Asparagus Paella

Seafood and Asparagus Paella

Do you like happiness? If you don’t, then this recipe isn’t for you. But if you do, then let’s make my macaroni and cheese together. This is the dish that put me on the map. It’s the one everyone talks about and the one that every person who comes over for dinner begs me to make. And the beauty is, it’s so simple. You’ll have friends begging you for this recipe.

Macaroni and Cheese

"A dish that looks fancy but is secretly simple will always have a place on my table. Wedge salads in general are great at pulling this off—and fortunately, everyone in our family enjoys them. I like to slice the iceberg wedges beforehand, then serve the toppings family-style so everyone can tailor their own. The kids and I like to dress our salad with ranch, but Chip always prefers blue cheese. Since this is one of Chip's favorite salads, that classic take is what I've shared here." – Joanna Gaines, Magnolia Table, Volume 3

Joanna Gaines' Wedge Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing

Wedge Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing

Cornbread. There is nothing better. It's a dish that brings smiles and family memories to everyone who can smell that piping hot pan of goodness. No matter whether you’d eat an entire sheet yourself or just like it as a side, it’s a necessary part of any soul food meal.

Millie Peartree's Cornbread with Honey Butter

Cornbread with Honey Butter

This episode is an ode to all things biscuits—because this is a food that epitomizes so much of what I love about getting creative and having fun in the

Magnolia Table with Joanna Gaines: Episode 6

Fried green tomatoes are delicious, but fried okra, well that’s a dish that is close to my heart.  I grew up eating fried okra, so these are two delicious items that you can prepare at the same time. I’m excited to share this recipe, so you can make them at home. Green tomatoes and okra are both seasonal ingredients. If frying okra out of season, you can use frozen okra that’s been thawed.

Millie Peartree's Fried Okra and Fried Green Tomatoes

Fried Okra and Fried Green Tomatoes

Friendsgiving Casserole is one of my kid’s favorite dishes and a go-to of mine when I want to take dinner to a new mother or a family who could use a hot meal—mostly because it’s easy to love, even for the pickiest eaters.

Friendsgiving Casserole Recipe

We serve this burger at Magnolia Table, and I have to confess that it’s one of my favorite things on the menu. My boys love burgers of just about any kind, so I could probably get away with serving something a little plainer to them (and, of course, you can leave any part of this out if you have picky eaters—or let everyone pick their own toppings). I just love how a grilled buttered brioche bun holds a savory burger, sweet drip jam, creamy melted cheese, and peppery fresh arugula, so that every single bite is an amazing combination of flavors and textures.

Gaines Brother Burgers with Drip Jam

Chicken Marsala is one of my dad’s favorite dishes. I learned to make this recipe by cooking it for him over time. This recipe has a really delicious balance of Marsala, mushrooms, garlic, and lemon. It’s an easy stovetop meal that can be made quickly, but is satisfying and rich in flavor.

Chicken Marsala

This sweet, smoky, spicy salsa is a great accompaniment to a classic grilled tri-tip. It’s also great on its own with tortilla chips or as an addition to tacos, steaks, or eggs. (When I make it, I try to keep some around for breakfast the next morning, but it’s so good that we usually end up eating it all at dinner.) The key to the salsa’s complex flavor is to grill the vegetables so that their skin gets a nice charred, smoky flavor; then add some fresh sweet corn. If you want to make the salsa without firing up the grill, you can get a similar result by toasting your vegetables over a flame on the stove or blackening them a bit under the broiler.

Fire Roasted Salsa

This cake is light and airy and fresh! It’s lemony but not overwhelmingly so. I love buttercream frosting and I love lemon curd, and so I decided to try combining them. The result was a frosting that is a dreamy blend of these two favorites: a fresh lemon flavor and a smooth, buttery frosting all in one. If you don't have time to make the lemon curd, it can be store-bought, but it’s fun to make. If you make it you’ll end up with a little bit of extra curd to enjoy on toast. My dad loves everything lemon so I make this cake for him on his birthday every year.

Elizabeth Poett's Lemon Cake with Lemon Curd Buttercream Frosting

Lemon Cake with Lemon Curd Buttercream Frosting

This fried chicken brined with lemon and rosemary and drizzled with honey is unbelievably delicious! It’s also pretty simple to make; once I get the chicken in the brine, I can just let it sit in the refrigerator, and the brine will flavor the meat while I get work done around the ranch. I use a lot of lemon and 2 tablespoons of rosemary, which add some nice California flavors to the dish. And when I fry the chicken, I dredge it in flour twice—once before I dip it in the buttermilk and once after—so that the crust will be really crisp and bubbly after it’s fried.

Rosemary Buttermilk Fried Chicken

In busy seasons, one thing that I always look forward to is a slow Sunday at home with my family. For us, that can look like spending some time in the garden,

Magnolia Table with Joanna Gaines: Season 3, Episode 1

Even though pot roasts are a well-known dish in southern culture, I feel there are different variations of the slow-cooked meat dish that span through the country as a whole, and even globally. There’s something really special about a slow-roasted meat that falls off the bone, it really says “made with love,” and it’s an easy dish, especially for family dinners. For me, pot roasts invoke memories of Sunday family dinners. We would rotate houses and have everyone’s unique pot roast. I remember a big dish at the center of the table with a beautiful piece of meat and my mom cutting chunks away. Vegetables and gravy were always my favorite. I would reach out and soak a roll in the delicious gravy!

Charles Hunter III's Pot Roast with Potatoes and Carrots

Pot Roast with Potatoes and Carrots

There is a large Portuguese community in our area, and this is how I first learned about chicken piri piri. I had this classic dish at a barbecue and fell in love with the combination of spice and acidity. I love to cook chicken, but sometimes it can feel plain. In this version of the dish, the lemon, vinegar, and spices bring so much flavor to the meat, and the use of red pepper flakes instead of the traditional piri-piri chiles makes it easy to put together. It’s a fun recipe to make on the grill, but it’s also simple to make in the oven if you’re feeling like a cozy meal at home, so I’ve given instructions for each method below.

Chicken Piri Piri

It’s easy to get behind eating meals that taste good or satisfy a certain craving.  For me, that often means a lot of comfort foods and sweets, or any dish

Magnolia Table with Joanna Gaines: Season 4, Episode 3

Whether inserted into a wreath, paired with a stocking or topped on a gift, a sprig (or two!) of holly adds that little something extra. This season at the

How to Make a Holly Sprig

When we were dating, Chip would often say that there are about five foods that he really, really loves, and one of them is scalloped potatoes. The sliced potatoes make this a pretty dish, and the cream and cheese mixture tastes like heaven. When we serve steak for dinner and I don’t have much time for sides, I’ll make mashed potatoes, but anytime I have a few extra minutes, I like to make this one especially for Chip.