This week, with the weather having been hot and wet recently, Roy discovered that there was a ‘Frankenstein Zucchini’ in his garden. It was far too big to just eat as it was, steamed or boiled, but he didn’t want to waste it either. He decided to try something which some of his Italian friends have suggested for ‘oversized vegetables’ – cooking it topped with meat, tomato and cheese. He was thrilled with the results, and thought it made a wonderful, yummy dinner. So this week, Roy Creates Deliciously Oversized Zucchini Topped With Meat!
You Will Need:
- 1 oversized zucchini. Alternately, you could use this mix to stuff capsicums, or to stuff a marrow.
- 500 grams of good mince
- 1 onion. Roy only had a purple onion on hand, but a white or brown onion would be fine too
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 teaspoon of mixed Italian herbs
- ½ a teaspoon of crushed chilli (adjust the amount to taste)
- A good pinch of salt
- Pepper to taste
- A can of crushed tomatoes
- Grated cheese (to top the mince mixture)
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and spray a baking tray with a little cooking oil
- Cut the zucchini into thick slices (about 2 inches thick) and place them in the baking tray.
- Finely chop the onion and garlic (Roy did this in a food processor to save time)
- Mix the mince, onion, garlic, chilli, salt, pepper, and Italian herbs together
- Divide the mix into portions to fit on top of your slices of zucchini. Form into patties and place on top of the zucchini.
- Pour the tomatoes over the top of the patties
- Top with grated cheese
- Bake for 30 to 45 minutes, or until the zucchini is soft and the mince is cooked through.
- Serve with salad and some crusty bread (if desired) and enjoy!