As we approach late September, very few people are saying this with gusto right about now! Its zucchini overload time, and well-meaning folk are quietly slipping out the back door of neighbourhood potlucks rather than leaving themselves open to being foisted with yet another marrow squash on saying goodbye to the hosts! (“all over North America, this same scene is playing out … “no really, we INSIST! you simply have to taste our zucchini this year! Its a rare Italian heritage variety!” …)
When you tire of zucchini noodles for salad, and zucchini bread and zucchini muffins, and your best efforts to quell the onset on young zucchini by eating the blossoms has been foiled by those couple of zucchini now the size of baseball bats — that were hiding in plain view – there is always the tried and true stuffed zucchini to fall back on!
This is a great option, as the stuffing is really whatever you choose to make it — with or without a binder, and with whatever vegetables and seasonings strike your fancy.
For this round, I used some rice (because that is what was in the fridge), ground bison, lots of tomatoes and garlic, and chili powder and cumin. Leftover filling for this will go quite nicely in quick fajitas for lunch, or heated up as-is with a bit of cheese on top. Leave out the rice, and you have a paleo-friendly meal. Add quinoa instead of rice if that’s your thing, or even add bulgur if you eat wheat. Lamb instead of beef, with lots of fresh lemon zest, mint and zaatar would be fabulous. You can see the possibilities are endless, so I’ll stop there! Stay tuned for the next iteration of “eat ALL the zucchini”! I have an idea for zucchini jam 🙂 — SRLSY!
Ingredients
- 1 T grapeseed oil or olive oil
- 2 large zucchini, about 12" in length and 1 1/2" in diameter
- 300 grams ground bison
- 1 cup finely diced leeks
- 3 large cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup celery, finely diced
- 1/2 cup carrot, finely diced
- 1/2 cup red pepper, finely diced
- 1/2 cup zucchini finely diced
- 4 roma tomatoes, finely diced
- 2 T chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 2 cups cooked rice
- 4-5 large basil leaves, chiffonade
- 1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- Preheat a large sautee pan to medium-high.
- Place the oil in the hot pan, and add the leeks, celery, carrots, and a pinch of salt, and sautee for 1-2 minutes until the onions just begin to soften.
- Add the garlic and sautee 1 minute more. Then add the chili powder, cumin and coriander, and allow the spices to toast slightly. Add the bison, and sautee until it begins to brown slightly. Add the remaining vegetables, salt and pepper, and about 1/4 c of water to prevent sticking. Reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 8-10 minutes until the tomatoes are softened and breaking down.
- Add the rice, and stir well to bread up any clumps. Cook, covered for another 2-3 minutes to allow the rice to absorb some of the flavours, and finally stir in the basil off the heat.
- While the filling is cooling slightly, cut the zucchini in half lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds to make a trough. Fill the zucchini with filling. Top with grated cheese if desired. Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes.
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