Ligurian Stuffed Zucchini
A classic summer recipe from the Italian region of Liguria.
Equipment
- Baking dish
- Frying pan
- Cutting board
- Mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 500 gr small zucchini
- 300 gr ground meat beef or a beef/pork mix
- 50 gr onion
- 50 gr Parmesan cheese
- 1 egg
- breadcrumbs
- olive oil
- nutmeg
- black pepper freshly ground
- salt
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the zucchini until just tender.Drain them well. Cut each zucchini in half lengthwise and carefully scoop out the flesh with a spoon, leaving a thin shell intact (Photo 1).Place the zucchini flesh into a sieve (Photo 2) and squeeze out as much liquid as possible (Photo 3).
- Finely chop the leek (or onion) and sauté it gently in olive oil until soft (Photo 4).Add the squeezed zucchini flesh to the pan and cook for a few minutes to evaporate any remaining moisture. Finely grate the Parmesan cheese (Photo 5) and prepare fresh breadcrumbs from stale bread (Photo 6).
- In a large bowl combine: ground meat, cooked zucchini, flesh grated Parmesan, breadcrumbs (Photo 7). Add the egg, salt and a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg. If you like, season with freshly ground black pepper. Mix everything well until you obtain a uniform filling.
- Fill each zucchini shell generously with the mixture (Photo 9).Grease a baking dish with olive oil and arrange the stuffed zucchini inside (Photo 10).Mix equal parts grated Parmesan and breadcrumbs (Photo 11) and sprinkle the mixture over the zucchini (Photo 12).
- Drizzle with 2–3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (Photo 13).Bake in a preheated oven at 180–200°C (350–390°F) for 30–40 minutes, or until the tops are beautifully golden brown (Photo 14).
- Let the zucchini cool for a few minutes before serving.Enjoy them warm, at room temperature or even cold the next day.