Some of you may have seen these zucchini on Saturday at the market; others of you got them in your “Basket of the Week”. I thought I might share a recipe or two with you so you might use them this week. The first one is a stuffed zucchini recipe I found on soupbelly.com and tried a few days ago; the other one is just a simple grilled zucchini pizza we have fixed for a quick summer meal… we usually have with a tomato salad and some good garlic bread.
Stuffed Eight ball Zucchini
2-3 “8 Ball” Zucchini
3 slices bacon
1 tomato, peeled and chopped
1/2 medium onion, chopped
3/4 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 to 1 cup chicken stock
Salt
Pepper
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Slice the tops off each zucchini. Set aside and reserve for later. Hollow out each zucchini, chop and reserve the pulp. Chop the tomato and onion and set aside.
Cut the bacon crosswise into 1/4” pieces. Add to skillet over medium-high heat and cook until bacon has browned and rendered most of its fat. Add the reserved zucchini pulp, tomato and onion and cook for 4-5 minutes. Remove pan from heat and add bread crumbs and 2/3 of the cheese reserving some for topping. Stir well to combine all ingredients. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as desired.
Stuff each hollowed zucchini with mixture. Place in a shallow baking dish or pan and add chicken stock to a depth of about 1/4 inch.
Place the pan in the oven and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and add remaining cheese to top of each zucchini. Place the reserved zucchini tops in the stock. Return to oven and cook for 20 more minutes or until the zucchini is tender.
– Original recipe from http://www.soupbelly.com
Grilled Zucchini Pizza
Zucchini Pizza is a healthy alternative to traditional pizza made with zucchini, pizza sauce, fresh basil, mozzarella cheese and cherry tomatoes.
1 “8 Ball” Zucchini
2 Tbsp. pizza sauce (your favorite, we use our homemade pasta sauce)
2 basil leaves, sliced
1/4 tsp. oregano, dried
1 1/2 oz, mozzarella cheese, lite
6 cherry tomatoes, sliced into quarters
Preheat Grill to medium heat
Cut the ends off of the zucchini and discard. Slice the zucchini into 1/4″ thick pieces.
Evenly divide the pizza sauce over the zucchini, then top with basil, oregano, cheese and cherry tomatoes.
Place zucchini on a non-stick aluminum foil or aluminium foil sprayed with cooking spray. Place foil
with zucchini on grill over low to medium heat. Cook until cheese has melted, about 5 minutes.
Tags: 8 ball zucchini, bacon, Basil, bread crumbs, cheddar cheese, Cherry tomatoes, chicken stock, mozzarella cheese, onions, oregano, Tomatoes
