The June-July selection of the Cook the Books club was Garlic and Sapphires, The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise by Ruth Reichl1. The author is well known for her sparkling prose and engaging way of talking about food—the latter skill honed during her career as food critic, which is the subject of this memoir. Readers interested in restaurants in NYC and the life of a restaurant reviewer will find the book entertaining. To be honest, I am neither. I think that her first memoir, Tender at the Bone, includes her best writing. While reading the book, the word "stuffed" kept coming to mind, blinking like a neon sign. I took that as my inspiration and was aided in my recipe development by the appearance at the farmers' market of beautiful round zucchini that just begged to be stuffed.
I headed their plea and chose to use ground pork meat (carne di maiale macinata) as the main ingredient for the stuffing. My husband participated eagerly in tasting the various renditions. I realize it is customary to complain about the abundance of zucchini and/or the length of their season: both are a plus for me, prompting me to come up with new ways of preparing them.
Print-friendly version of briciole's recipe for Stuffed zucchini
Ingredients:
- 2 round zucchini, about 12 ounces / 340 g, possibly organic
- 1 tablespoon / 15 ml extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 ounces / 42 g fresh onion, finely diced
- 1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
- 1/4 teaspoon Harissa spice mix3
- 2 ounces / 56 g ground pork
- 3/4 ounce / 20 g sliced prosciutto crudo, cut into small pieces
- fine sea salt, to taste
- 1 ounce / 28 g cheese (pecorino or sharp cheddar), grated
Cut the top of each zucchini and set aside. With the help of a melon baller, scoop out the pulp from each zucchini, leaving a thickness of about 1/4 inch / 6 mm. Finely dice the pulp.
Precook the zucchini by steaming them (body and top) until just tender. Set aside.
Warm up a small skillet and add the olive oil. Add the onion, stir and cook on gentle heat until translucent and soft, stirring often. Add the garlic and stir. After 1 minute sprinkle the Harissa spice mix and stir. After 1 minute, add the pork and stir while at the same time crumbling the meat with a fork.
When the meat is no longer pink, add the diced pulp and stir well. After 2-3 minutes, cover the skillet and cook for 5 minutes, then remove the lid, add the prosciutto and stir. Continue cooking until the zucchini pulp is soft and the water released has evaporated.
Adjust salt, give it a final stir and take off the heat. Let cool, then add the cheese and stir well.
Heat the oven to 375 F / 190 C.
Spoon half the stuffing into each zucchini, pressing gently to make it all fit. Place the zucchini on a baking sheet lined with a silicon baking mat or parchment paper and put the top on. Place the baking sheet in the oven. Bake for about 15 minutes.
Serve immediately.
Serves 1-2
This is a simple and delicious recipe for zucchini. It requires a bit of preparation, but the result repays the effort with interest.
1 The book's page on the author's website
2 Ronde de Nice zucchini
3 The Harissa spice mix I use
Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:
or launch the zucchine ripiene audio file [mp3].
[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]
This is my contribution to the current selection of our Cook the Books hosted by Claudia of Honey From Rock. (You can find the guidelines for participating in the event on this page.)
FTC disclosure: I have received the napkin free of charge from the manufacturer (la FABBRICA del LINO). I have not and will not receive any monetary compensation for presenting it on my blog. The experience shared and the opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own.
Yum! I grab those round zucchini whenever I happen to encounter them. I like them so much better than the usual long variety for stuffing, but they can be hard to find in these parts... !
Posted by: Frank | August 01, 2018 at 09:15 AM
I love those little round zucchinis! I must find some!
Posted by: Debra Eliotseats | August 01, 2018 at 07:56 PM
What a perfect way to use those little zucchinis! I only ever see them at our Farmer's Market and now I'll be on the lookout for them!
Posted by: Lynda England Hardy | August 02, 2018 at 08:13 AM
I have never seen these cute little zucchini before. Just adorable and they sound yummy. Stuffed is quite the impression I got as well. I don't know how Ruth ate all that food...and is not as big as a house!
Posted by: Wendy Klik | August 03, 2018 at 04:44 AM
Agree, the round ones are much better for stuffing, Frank. I am lucky farmers here grow them :)
Posted by: Simona Carini | August 03, 2018 at 08:16 AM
I hope you will, Debra :)
Posted by: Simona Carini | August 03, 2018 at 08:17 AM
Me too, Lynda. I think they are considered a bit of a specialty item, and given their shape they take more space. Hurrah for Farmers' Markets! :)
Posted by: Simona Carini | August 03, 2018 at 08:18 AM
I hope you can find some Wendy: they are really perfect for stuffing and the result is prettier than when one uses the long ones :)
Posted by: Simona Carini | August 03, 2018 at 08:20 AM
Simona -- we have a farmer near me who raises multitudes of heirloom produce, one of which is the sweet little zucchini you featured in your post. It's not a french variety, but its nickname is "cueball". I stuffed them something along the line of how you did, and they made for individual side dishes that everyone loved. As to the book, I too liked Tender to the Bone a bit better than this current selection but they are all great reads
Posted by: Delaware Girl Eats | August 05, 2018 at 11:35 AM
The cue ball looks nice! I will the other stuffings soon: as you say, they make a nice dish :)
Posted by: Simona Carini | August 09, 2018 at 12:11 PM
I'd have to order the seeds for those cute little zucchini as they're not in the market here. Your stuffed cue balls would make super appetizers, and look delicious. Thanks for asking, the air quality here has improved, not that it was bad where our place is. The volcano seems to have quieted down.
Posted by: Claudia | August 16, 2018 at 10:49 AM