Monday, November 7, 2011

Stuffed Zucchini

Wow!  These have to be my favorite new thing.  Fabulous!
 ...AND... they are SO easy.  You could totally make these up ahead of time, refrigerate, and throw them in the oven to bake before your meal.  They really should be eaten when they are hot and just out of the oven.

Click on this link for a full length video of this recipe:
I shot this video for Ingles Markets.  You may be familiar with Ingles if you live in GA, NC, SC, TN, VA, AL.


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Ingredients:
3 zucchinis
1/2 large onion, chopped fine (~ 1/2 cup)
1 Tbsp butter
6 slices crispy bacon (~ 1/2 cup chopped)
1 Tbsp sour cream
1/4 to 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp curry powder
1 Roma tomato, seeded and chopped
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
freshly grated Parmesan cheese
fresh cracked black pepper
kosher salt

Method:
Give the zucchini a quick wash for good measure.
Slice in half lengthwise.
Leave the ends on to keep the filling in.

Scoop out the flesh with a melon baller or a spoon.  Leave a ledge of zucchini around the edges.  For the life of me, I couldn't make straight lines.  That's okay.  They were still delicious.  Arrange the zucchini boats in a baking dish.
Chop the zucchini flesh as small as you like.
Finely chop half a sweet onion.
Chop up some good smokey bacon.  You could leave this out for a vegetarian side dish (maybe add some chopped mushrooms?)... but my family goes through quite a lot bacon, so it's going in!
Saute the onions in butter until soft and translucent. Add in the chopped bacon, then  season with curry powder and salt.  Cook until desired doneness of onions and remove from heat.
To the zucchini flesh, add the sour cream.. (How can this be bad?)
 Rough chop some fresh thyme leaves.
 Mix the cooked onion and bacon mixture with other ingredients.  Taste and adjust seasoning.
Stir in the tomatoes.  Seed them or else there may be too much moisture in the filling.  You don't really want the filling to be all runny when you cut into it. 
Refill the zucchini shells with the filling mixture.

Grate some good aged Parmigiano Reggiano cheese on top and sprinkle with fresh cracked black pepper. Bake uncovered at 375 degrees F for 30 - 35 minutes, until tops are pretty and brown.
Of course you know me.  I'm gonna grate even more cheese on them again...  Aren't they gorgeous?!  Lots of texture.  Smokiness from the bacon.  Salty from the Parmesan cheese.  Soft and buttery zucchini.  Mmmm....

My, oh my!!  Promise me you'll try!
In hindsight, a sprinkle of fresh chopped parsley on top of these would be really pretty.  But I didn't have any at my disposal.


Written Method:

Give the zucchini a quick wash for good measure.  Slice in half lengthwise. Leave the ends on to keep the filling in. Scoop out the flesh with a melon baller or a spoon.  Leave a ledge of zucchini around the edges.  For the life of me, I couldn't make straight lines.  That's okay.  They were still delicious.  Arrange the zucchini boats in a baking dish. Chop the zucchini flesh as small as you like.

Finely chop half a sweet onion. Chop up some good smokey bacon.  You could leave this out for a vegetarian side dish (maybe add some chopped mushrooms?)... but my family goes through quite a lot bacon, so it's going in!  Saute the onions in the butter until soft and translucent.  Add in the bacon. Season with the curry powder and salt.   Cook until desired doneness of onions and remove from heat. To the zucchini flesh, add sour cream.  (How can this be bad?). Rough chop some fresh thyme leaves. Mix the cooked onion and bacon mixture with other ingredients.  Taste and adjust seasoning.

Stir in the tomatoes.  Seed them or else there may be too much moisture in the filling.  You don't really want the filling to be all runny when you cut into it. Refill the zucchini shells with the filling mixture.

Grate some good aged Parmigiano Reggiano cheese on top and sprinkle with fresh cracked black pepper. Bake uncovered at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes.  Of course you know me.  I'm gonna grate even more cheese on them again...  Aren't they gorgeous?!  Lots of texture.  Smokiness from the bacon.  Salty from the Parmesan cheese.  Soft and buttery zucchini.  Mmmm....

In hindsight, a sprinkle of fresh chopped parsley on top of these would be really pretty.  But I didn't have any at my disposal.

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Waffle Iron Tater Tot Hash Browns

Roasted Red Pepper and Basil Pesto Penne
Meatballs Stroganoff
Crawfish Monica
Skinny Mexican Pizza
Steamed Asian Dumplings


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49 comments:

  1. Looks and almost smells delish! I would only substitute the curry powder for, maybe, basil, or oregano. ....yummy kisses....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think her photo above IS fresh oregano, rather than thyme, that was stated in the recipe. You could probably substitute any herb according to your taste. Looks yummy!

      Delete
    2. I agree with Anonymous (above). It IS fresh Oregano and not Thyme. Oregano is stronger than fresh thyme, so she may want to correct this in the recipe

      Delete
  2. OMG, I am making those this week. Looks YUMMO!

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  3. Was looking for something besides grilled, sauted and bread to use my zucchini, this is perfect!

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  4. definitely giving these a try as I have way too many zucchini right now! they look so yummy!

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  5. Yummy! I used Greek yogurt instead of sour cream, and they turned out great!

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  6. How well do these reheat? I like to cook meals that I can have leftovers the next night.

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    Replies
    1. I would love to give you an answer, but I've never had leftovers from this dish. For this recipe, I've just cooked the amount we needed that evening. Since nothing has to be "crunchy" or "fried," etc., I would imagine they would heat up just fine. I can tell you that I have received a ton of compliments on these from people who tried them.

      Another option, is that you could always fill all of them but only bake the ones you need, leaving the others filled, but in the fridge. Then you have more ready to go into the oven the next night.

      Delete
    2. These look so yummy. I am trying to cook low carb for the girls at my sorority house and they love love love zucchini. Gonna try as soon as we go back. Thanks

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  7. this looks really good I'm going to try it..... making me hungry just looking at it

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    Replies
    1. It is one of my favorite side dishes. Hope you enjoy it, too!

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  8. Hi Julie,

    My family and I made these last night. They turned out wonderfully! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe. I will definitely be making these often!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Lilly! I'm so pleased that your family enjoyed them. Always great to find a "family friendly veggie," isn't it?!

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  9. Making these right now! Thank you so much for the wonderful recipe. The only change I made was that I added bell pepper and garlic to the mix.

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    Replies
    1. Shana - I'm so glad! Hope they come out great!

      Delete
  10. I made last night but changed a few things i did carrots instead of tomatoes, creole&complete seasoning instead of curry as i didnt have curry and i didnt add cheese! They were a huge hit! Do u think i could make a large amount and freeze?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Your changes sound great! One of my favorite things about cooking is that you can change almost any factor you want to your liking. I have never tried freezing them but I don't see why not. I would freeze before baking. If you try it, please report back to let viewers know how that works out. Thanks so much for visiting my blog!!!

      Delete
  11. LOL...When I was at the store, I was trying to remember what the ingredients were...I could remember most of them, except I thought it was ground beef instead of bacon...so that is how I am making mine tonight...I'll let you know how they turn out.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That is funny! Well pretty soon (hopefully) I will have an app made that will provide you with a grocery list to avoid the grocery guessing game. :)

      Thanks for following me, and be sure to let us all know how these come out for you.

      Julie

      Delete
  12. Julie, So yummy!! I didn't use the curry powder because I really just don't like it. Instead, I used some garlic Philadelphia Cooking Creme. Gave it a nice zesty kick! Thanks for the idea and recipe!

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    Replies
    1. Thank YOU! My favorite thing about cooking is that you can just change things to suit your own tastes... and sharing those ideas is even BETTER!! :) Hope you will visit again! Julie

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  13. So yummy! Only issue was.... Safeway ran out of Zucchini! I actually posted the results and a link to your page on my blog :)

    http://teamhalfie.blogspot.com/2013/03/squashzucchini-boats-grapefruit-juice.html

    I'm a bit new to G+ so I'm trying to add you to my posts... but it's not working yet. I'm still trying!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks guys! I'm glad I was part of the zucchini trial and not the grapefruit! Yeckkk!!!

      Hope you will come back and try more recipes. Julie

      Delete
  14. Hi,

    Big thanks for this great recipe. I am not a very good cook, but this one - i nailed it and everyone praised me. :))))

    Gabriela

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  15. I made this for dinner tonight, and it was even better than I hoped it would be! Thanks!

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    Replies
    1. Thank you, Megan... that's always a nice surprise, isn't it?

      Delete
  16. Thank you for the recipe. Made this for dinner last night with some baked chicken and cous cous, and it was a hit! Definitely one of my new favorite side dishes, and everyone asked for a copy of the recipe!

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  17. I wanted to make these all week. I made with turkey bacon instead, and they are so good. Thanks for the recipe always looking for great ones. I am also making this dish for my coworkers. I showed them the pictures and they all loved, wait till they taste them!

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  18. This recipie is fabulous! Made a few changes: turkey lunch meat chopped up since it was only meat available, a lot more variety of spices (Indian family over here) and mozzarella cheese to top it off. These have become a family favorite in our house! Thank you for giving us this great addition to our family dinners!

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  19. Great recipe, my husband murdered these! I did not have the fresh tomato so I sauteed red bell pepper with the onions and it was great!

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    Replies
    1. Toni - LOVE that comment.. that's a new one for me!! ("my husband murdered these!") Still laughing... but proud that you enjoyed! Thanks for reading. Hope you will return again!
      Julie

      Delete
  20. Looks yummy! I made a different version with hamburger & marinara sauce, so def will try this too.
    Is there a way to print your recipes?

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  21. Oh my... these were quite yummy!! Excellent job! Everyone loved them :) Made as is except subbed green onions for the thyme. Huge success! Thanx for the awesome recipe :)

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  22. Delicious! I added chopped chicken to mine and had it as a main course. Love it!

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  23. I'm so glad I found you. My husband and I just ate these. YUM! We loved them to pieces! Thank you!

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    Replies
    1. Julie - welcome aboard... and thanks for finding me! Glad you enjoyed the zucchini. Hope you will find lots of other things to pique your interest. :)
      Julie

      Delete
  24. This is a great recipe. Even my non-veggie eating significant other enjoyed them. (Must be the bacon. ;) I found a way to make your lines straight - use a metal baby spoon! Thank you for sharing. Great blog.

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  25. Made these tonight but substituted garlic powder for the curry, and added some basil and onion powder. I also added a little monterey jack and romano cheese. These were fabulous! The family loved them and we will definitely be making them again! Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!

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  26. This definitely sounds very good, with the curry powder I could certainly see topping it with some fresh chopped cilantro at the end as well! Going to have to try this, with the mushrooms in place of the bacon. (Nothing against bacon at all, but this seems like it would make an excellent pure veggie side dish.)

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  27. I was wondering if you "pre-boil" the zuccinis first to soften them or just use them raw? I am pretty new to cooking zuccinis and know this might sound stupid, but would appreciate any help! Thanks in advance! ;-)

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    Replies
    1. I do neither. But in the end, they will be cooked, because we are going to put all the ingredients into the oven to bake. So don't fear... you won't be eating them raw. :)
      Thanks for the questions, and don't hesitate to ask. That's what I'm here for.

      Delete
  28. I just made these tonight and LOOOVED them!!! I added some pepper jack cheese to the mix and on top. They were DELICIOUS! I will definitely be making them again. Not to mention I ate 4 by myself, so that's 2 whole zucchinis in one sitting. Yay for being healthy!

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  29. De-lish!!! We just finished eating these Wow full of flavor. Everyone had compliments. Thanks for the awesome recipe!!

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