When this month's issue of Saveur arrived I knew the minute I saw this recipe I would be making it.
First, like everyone who has zucchini, by this time of the summer like everyone else, I'm swimming in zucchini. Second, I love ricotta stuffed anything and I always have a tub of it in the fridge.
This recipe was super easy to put together and the filling was so delicious that I plan making it again stuff some eggplant I have in a fridge and to fill some large pasta shells in the pantry. I made some adjustments for my own personal taste and to match some ingredients I had on hand to keep the recipe Pantry Plan friendly.
If you are in danger of being buried by an avalanche of zucchini, go pick out a few same sized ones, call some friends over for dinner, and make these! You can cut them up into small sizes as appetizers or cut them in half to serve as a sides to nice grilled chicken breast or they make a the perfect summer main dish with some sweet corn salad.
Ricotta Stuffed Zucchini
adapted from the August/September issue of Saveur
6 medium zucchini, sliced in half lengthwise
7 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
2 cups ricotta cheese
3/4 cup grated Romano cheese
3/4 cup Italian seasoned Panko breadcrumbs
3 Tbsp freshly chopped marjoram
2 tsp chopped fresh sage
1 large egg, beaten
Kosher salt
Fresh ground pepper
Fresh grated Parmesan cheese
Scoop out and discard the pulp from each zucchini half, leaving as much of the meat intact as possible. Heat 3 Tbsp of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and saute until soft and then add garlic, cook for 2 minutes more or until you smell strong smell of garlic. Remove from heat and set aside.
In a medium bowl, stir together remaining ingredients except egg. Add salt and pepper to taste and stir in egg. Set filling aside.
Arrange an oven rack about 7" from broiler element. Brush insides of zucchini with remaining olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Broil zucchini, oiled side up, for about 5 - 7 minutes until flesh is just starting to soften.
Remove from oven, fill with each zucchini half with ricotta cheese filling (about 1/2 a cup per zucchini half), sprinkle desired amount of fresh grated Parmesan cheese on top and broil until the zucchini are soft and the tops of the cheese are browned.
