Skillet Squash and Potatoes

Thirty-five. March 15th, 2027. The halfway point to seventy. The number that I never thought I'd reach because when I was twenty-three with two babies at the Waffle House, thirty-five sounded like: old. Thirty-five sounded like the age when life was settled, when the decisions were made, when the person you were going to be had already been decided. I was wrong. Thirty-five is not settled. Thirty-five is: in motion. Thirty-five is a restaurant that's approaching half a million in revenue and a daughter who is employed and a son who is in counseling and another son who talks to a fish and a mother who writes messages in frosting and a grandmother who watches from a photograph and a woman who still — STILL — doesn't quite believe that all of this is real.

Mama's cake: "35 — THE TABLE HAS NO CEILING." The table has no ceiling. The progression: getting started, almost there, look at you, keep going, unstoppable, the table is set, the table grows, still growing, look how far, the table is full, the table has no ceiling. Eleven cakes. Eleven years of frosting prophecy from a woman who works at Kroger — worked, past tense, she retired three years ago, but the frosting still comes from a woman who knows the Kroger bakery aisle better than anyone alive. The table has no ceiling. Mama sees it. The accountant confirms it. The cornbread proves it. The ceiling is: wherever I stop. And I don't stop. Mitchells don't stop. Stopping is for people who have arrived. I am still: arriving. The arriving is: the thing.

The team threw me a dinner. After hours. At the restaurant. Mona cooked (cornbread, chicken fried steak — my guilty pleasure, the one dish I order when someone else cooks for me, the dish that is Southern to its bones and crispy and drowning in white gravy and is the food equivalent of a hug from someone who doesn't ask questions). James made a brisket specifically for me (the smallest brisket he's ever smoked — six pounds, "a personal brisket," he said, which is the most James thing a man can say). Chloe served. DeShawn made the biscuits. Tamika made the greens. The team fed me. The reversal. The woman who feeds: was fed.

Jayden came. He sat at the counter. He said: "Happy birthday, Mama." Three words. Not "fine." Not "whatever." Happy birthday, Mama. The words that mean: I am present. I am here. I see you. The three words from the boy who has been behind the door for months, the boy who goes to Pastor James on Saturdays and comes back a little more open each time, the boy who pushed a bully and is learning that the push is not the answer and the answer is: harder than the push but better. Happy birthday, Mama. I'll take three words. I'll take them and hold them and put them on the fridge of my heart. Happy birthday, Mama. The gift.

The restaurant: Year 4 on Gallatin Pike approaches. The numbers from January and February: on pace for Rita's $600,000 goal. The catering arm is growing — a third client is in negotiations, a healthcare company that wants bi-weekly lunches for 60 people. The restaurant is hiring: I need a front-of-house manager, someone to handle the counter service so I can be in the kitchen or at catering events. The business is: bigger than me. The business outgrew me a year ago. The outgrowing is: the success. The success is: letting go. The letting go is: the birthday. Thirty-five and letting go. Thirty-five and still here. Thirty-five and the table has no ceiling. Amen.

Mona’s chicken fried steak and James’s personal brisket were the stars of that birthday table — and I am not going to pretend otherwise — but what I keep coming back to is the way the whole table was filled, every inch of it, the kind of fullness that takes a team. This skillet squash and potatoes is the dish I reach for when I want to honor that feeling in my own kitchen: nothing fancy, everything intentional, the kind of side that quietly holds the whole meal together without asking for credit. The table has no ceiling, and neither does a good cast-iron skillet.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

2 medium yellow squash, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
2 medium zucchini, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, diced into 1/2-inch cubes
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped

Instructions

Start the potatoes. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the diced potatoes in a single layer, season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and the smoked paprika, and cook undisturbed for 5–6 minutes until the bottoms are golden. Stir and continue cooking another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender and browned on most sides. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
Soften the onion. Reduce heat to medium. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the butter to the same skillet. Once the butter melts, add the sliced onion and cook for 4–5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and beginning to caramelize. Add the minced garlic and cook 1 minute more until fragrant.
Add the squash. Add the yellow squash and zucchini to the skillet. Season with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, black pepper, onion powder, and red pepper flakes if using. Cook, stirring gently every couple of minutes, for 6–8 minutes until the squash is tender but still holds its shape — you want a little color on the edges, not mush.
Bring it all together. Return the cooked potatoes to the skillet and fold everything together gently. Cook an additional 2 minutes so the flavors meld and everything is heated through. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.
Finish and serve. Remove from heat, scatter the fresh parsley over the top, and serve directly from the skillet. This dish is best hot and is made for a crowded table.

Nutrition (per serving)

Skillet Squash and Potatoes — The Side Dish That Belongs at Every Table That Has No Ceiling