Recipe: Zucchini Ripieni (Stuffed Zucchini)

Shutterstock*

Veggies, cheese... all stuffed in a zucchini....tell me this is not heavenly goodness.

Ingredients:
2 large zucchini
½ cup mushrooms, finely chopped
½ yellow onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1bsp olive oil
1/3 cup yellow pepper, diced (you can use any pepper you like, my favorite is yellow because it’s not as powerful as a red pepper)
2 cup spinach, finely chopped
½ cup canned diced tomatoes 
1/3 cup parsley, chopped
1 tsp hot pepper flakes (optional)
salt & pepper to taste
4 tbsp of mozzarella, shredded

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 425, line baking dish with parchment paper

1.      Wash zucchini and pat dry. Cut off stem and stub at each end.
2.      Cut zucchini in half, long wise and with a spoon scarp the inside of the zucchini out so that it looks like a boat. Put the inside aside and set the zucchini boats in the baking dish
3.      Finely chop up the inside of the zucchini that you have scrapped out and set aside
4.      In a sauce pan, sauté chopped onions and crushed garlic
5.      Add the chopped inside zucchini and let simmer for 2-3 minutes

(Courtesy of The Mutts Kitchen)

6.      Add mushrooms, peppers and sauté until tender
7.      Add tomatoes and let simmer for about 15 min
8.      Add spinach, parsley, salt, pepper and pepper flakes and let simmer for another 10 min, until all liquid is absorbed. Take off heat
9.      Fill each zucchini boat with the filling and top each one with mozzarella. It’s about 1 tbsp of mozzarella for each zucchini.
10.   Bake at 425 for about 50 minutes.  First 35-40 minutes bake covered with foil wrap, then remove foil and let bake for another 10-15 minutes, until cheese is golden. 

 

*Image of “stuffed zucchini“  via Shutterstock.

This article was originally published on The Mutts Kitchen. Follow them on Facebook. Read the original here.