Beautiful zucchini and yellow summer squash continue to come in from the gardens every day, and while they do it would be a shame not to have a nice stuffed zucchini boat meal before the season slips by. This is what last night’s convent cook thought as she prepared to make our dinner. She wanted to do something a little different from what we usually do and she turned out a meal that brought applause from the entire sisterhood even though we have had quite a few zucchini meals this summer. Using a combination of sweet and hot Italian sausage and a generous mixture of favorite Italian cheeses she succeeded in satisfying even the most discriminating pallet that evening.

The two things, I think, that put this dish over the top was the combination of cheeses (she used Parmigiano-Reggiano, Pecorino, Asiago and Gorgonzola) any of which give a distinctive taste, and then the generous use of fresh garden herbs like basil, oregano and Italian parsley.

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Italian Sausage Stuffed Zucchini Boats

SERVINGS 2people CHANGE SERVING SIZE people

COOK TIME 25-30 minutes

PREP TIME 15 minutes

READY IN 40-45 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 medium zucchini
• 1 Hot Italian sausage Johnsonville, casing removed
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 small onion(s) chopped
• 4 oz cream cheese
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 5 tomato(es) grape, halved
• 1 oz grated mozzarella Parmesan, or any favorite Italian cheese
• olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• basil shredded for garnish
• oregano
• parsley

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Blanch the zucchini in a large pot of boiling water, 7 minutes, then place in cold water 5 minutes. Cut zucchini in half lengthwise, then scoop out all but ¼ inch of flesh. Brown the sausage in a small skillet, breaking the pieces into small bits, 5 to 6 minutes, then remove the meat from the skillet.
3. In the same skillet, on medium heat, add the onion and sauté until soft. Add garlic and sauté 1 additional minute (add a little bit of olive oil if the pan is dry). Add the meat back to the skillet along with the cream cheese, zucchini pulp and bread crumbs and stir until the cheese has melted. Taste and add salt and pepper or other seasonings as desired; fresh basil, oregano and parsley are nice.
4. Place the zucchini boats on a small sheet pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper, then fill with the meat mixture. Top with tomato halves and grated cheese.
5. Place in oven and bake 25-30 minutes until the cheese melts and starts to brown. Garnish with basil.