Overgrown zucchini perfect for stuffing

It's every gardener's secret harvest shame: Those zucchini plants you nursed along all summer have gone ballistic.

Maybe you went on vacation for a week. Maybe you turned your head for a moment. But what once were promising squash fingerlings suddenly seem as big as your arm.

The conventional wisdom is that the only use for zucchini that big is compost. And as usual, the conventional wisdom is wrong.

Just stuff them.

Those big zucchini may no longer be good for cooking by themselves (the marrow is too watery), but with a little preparation they make ideal cases for all kinds of fillings. And there are few things more flexible and delicious than baked stuffed squash.

Stuff them with whatever you have on hand. Bake them with a sauce, or not. Serve them hot, or at room temperature.

Stuffed zucchini is kitchen economy at its best: Nothing goes to waste, and a little bit of this and that only makes it better.

The best zucchini for stuffing are those just on the brink of monsterdom: 3/4 to 1 pound. Cut them in half lengthwise. A melon baller is the best tool for hollowing out the center. Starting with the biggest spoon, scoop out little balls as you would for a honeydew salad. With the smaller spoon, smooth out the sides.

You'll end up with something that looks like a canoe. Don't trim too much or the squash will collapse during baking. Leave about 1/4 inch along the sides and a little more along the bottom.

If you've got really big zucchini, cut them into roughly 3-inch sections and hollow them into cups. If for some reason you've decided you're going to stuff smaller zucchini (petits farcis, anyone?), just shave a bit along one side and use that as the starting point.

Don't throw out the cores. Dry them out by chopping them coarsely, then sauteing until they cook down and lose their moisture. That's the base for the filling. You can add bits of whatever you have on hand for flavoring: ground lamb, Italian sausage, sauteed peppers, cooked rice or grains, cheese, herbs.

Bind the mixture with beaten eggs if you like. Or not. If you do, you'll probably want to add extra grated cheese and fresh bread crumbs to absorb any extra moisture.

Some cooks prefer to stuff the zucchini raw and cook everything through during the baking. I like the texture and flavor a little better when I steam the zucchini until it's almost done, then stuff and bake for a briefer time.

Whichever way you go, you'll want a little moisture in the baking dish, if only to prevent the zucchini bottom from scorching. A tomato sauce is always good, preferably spiked with capers or olives or something else to give it a little pop. Or you can go with a simple light broth, or even water.

To serve, you can pretty much play that as you like as well (are you sensing a theme here?). Stuffed zucchini is superb straight out of the oven, but it's just as good lukewarm. Bake in advance and refrigerate, then just let it come to room temperature before serving.

Stuffed vegetables are easy that way. Probably the sagest advice of all comes from the great Richard Olney, who wrote in Simple French Food: "Recipes for stuffed vegetables should not be taken too seriously - at least insofar as the ingredients for the fillings are concerned; vegetables may be stuffed with practically anything, and, if a bit of common sense is brought to the composition, they cannot help being good."

Makes 4-6 servingsEndTextStartText

1/4 cup farro

Salt

Olive oil

3 large zucchini (about 3/4 pound each)

Salt

1 onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, diced

1/4 cup chopped basil, plus more for topping

1/4 pound mushrooms, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/2 cup white wine

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup crumbled feta, plus more for topping

1 cup water

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1. Cook farro in plenty of rapidly boiling salted water until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain and cool.

2. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 5-quart gratin dish with olive oil.

3. Cut the zucchini in half lengthwise and use a melon baller or serrated spoon to remove the insides to make what looks like a canoe. Use the large scoop to remove most of the pulp in balls and the small scoop to smooth the sides. Leave about one-quarter inch of flesh at the sides and a little more at the bottom. Collect the pulp on a cutting board and chop coarsely.

4. Season inside of zucchini boats lightly with salt and steam over rapidly boiling water until almost tender, about 5 minutes.

5. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet and add the onion. Cook until it softens, about 5 minutes. Add the red bell pepper and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add chopped zucchini pulp and basil, and cook until dry, about 10 minutes.

6. Increase heat to high. Add the mushrooms and cook until soft, 5 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add the white wine and cook until dry. Set aside to cool.

7. Stir the cooked farro, pine nuts, and feta into the cooled vegetable mixture. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Spoon mixture into the hollowed-out zucchini, mounding on top. It will take 4 to 6 tablespoons per zucchini half.

8. Arrange the stuffed zucchini in the gratin dish; they may fit quite tightly. Sprinkle the tops with more crumbled feta. Pour the water into the baking dish so it just covers the bottom. Bake until the tops have browned, about 15 to 20 minutes.

9. Drizzle the top of each zucchini with a little more olive oil, transfer to a serving platter, and scatter over more slivered basil. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Per serving (based on 6): 164 calories; 7 grams protein; 16 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams sugar; 7 grams fat; 11 milligrams cholesterol; 157 milligrams sodium; 3 grams dietary fiber.

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Makes 4-6 servings

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Olive oil

3 large zucchini (about 3/4 pound each)

Salt

1 onion, diced

3 Italian sausages, removed from casing and crumbled

1/2 cup white wine

11/2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated (about 3/4 cup), divided

Freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup fresh bread crumbs

1 egg, lightly beaten

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 cups chopped tomatoes, fresh or canned

2 tablespoons capers, rinsed

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1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a gratin dish large enough to hold the zucchini with olive oil.

2. Cut the zucchini in half lengthwise and use a melon baller or serrated spoon to remove the insides to make what looks like a canoe. Use the large melon scoop to remove most of the pulp in balls and the small scoop to smooth the sides. Leave about one-fourth inch of the flesh at the sides and a little more at the bottom. Collect the pulp on a cutting board and chop coarsely.

3. Season the inside of the zucchini boats lightly with salt and steam over rapidly boiling water until almost tender, about 5 minutes.

4. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and add the chopped onions. Cook until the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add the zucchini pulp and cook until dry, about 10 minutes. Add the crumbled Italian sausage and fry until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Add the white wine, increase the heat to high, and cook until the wine has evaporated, about 5 minutes.

5. Remove the mixture to a bowl to cool, then stir in one-half cup of the Parmigiano-Reggiano and the bread crumbs, and season to taste with more salt and pepper. The mixture should be highly seasoned. Stir in enough of the beaten egg to make the mixture hang together.

6. Without cleaning the skillet the zucchini was cooked in, add another tablespoon of olive oil, then add the garlic, and cook over medium heat until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes and the capers, and cook, scraping any flavorings from the bottom of the pan, until the sauce just begins to thicken, about 20 minutes. Add salt to taste.

7. Spoon the tomato sauce into the oiled gratin dish. Spoon the cooked sausage mixture into the hollowed-out zucchini, mounding on top, 4 to 6 tablespoons per zucchini.

8. Arrange the stuffed zucchini in the gratin dish; they may fit quite tightly. Dust with the remaining grated Parmigiano-Reggiano and bake until the stuffing has firmed and the tops have browned slightly, about 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Per serving (based on 6): 311 calories; 12 grams protein; 13 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams sugar; 21 grams fat; fat; 80 milligrams cholesterol; 584 milligrams sodium; 3 grams dietary fiber.EndText