Veggie Tales

The veggies are in! The veggies are in! 

This year we're growing zucchini, crookneck squash, Roma & heirloom tomatoes, jalapeno & sorrento peppers, okra, cantaloupe, and a whole helluvalot of herbs. I wanted to grow stuff we actually eat, and now I'm running out of recipes... especially with the squash. I've fried and sauteed them, I've made zucchini bread, and tonight I took it to the next level and they got stuffed. 

Lo and behold... it turned out pretty good. So good I wanted to share it here, because if I don't I'll forget what I did and never get it right again. 

STUFFED SUMMER SQUASH BOATS

(Because if you call it "boats" little boys will eat it.)

Feeds 4 with some leftovers. 

2 medium-large sized zucchini

2 medium-large sized yellow squash

1/2 cup finely chopped vidalia onion

1 large tomato (or 2-3 Romas)

1/2 lb. ground pork OR 1 package Healthy Choice smoked sausage, chopped finely

1 tsp minced garlic

(optional) 1 TBS chopped fresh basil 

(optional) 2 sorrento peppers, chopped finely

1 cup prepared couscous or brown rice

1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

METHOD

Preheat oven to 375. 

Boil whole squash & zucchini in a large pot of water until tender, about 12 minutes. Remove from water.

Slice squash lengthwise into halves. Scoop out seeds & pulp, leaving the squash shells - reserve pulp & seeds in a bowl for later. 

Spray skillet with cooking spray and saute meat with onion, garlic, and sorrento peppers and cook until brown. Season meat with salt & pepper. Add squash pulp to the meat mixture and simmer on low. Remove from heat.

Add in your couscous or rice, chopped tomato, and Parmesan cheese. Mix well. 

Spray a 9x13 glass dish and arrange squash halves in it. Fill the boats with stuffing mixture until they are heaping. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. 

Cover with foil and bake 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 10 minutes or until brown. 

Devour the squash boats & go blog about how fantastic they were.