Hit Up The Local Farmer’s Markets And Make Italian Sausage-Stuffed Zucchini

I have been visiting local farmer's markets and have noticed the abundance of zucchini, have you?  Some of them are HUGE!  I have a fantastic zucchini bread recipe from an old church cookbook that I overuse this time of year but I was looking for something different.  Taste of Home came through with something the whole family likes.

This recipe will get them to eat their veggies and it tastes sorta like pizza so everyone wins!  There is an abundance of fresh local home-grown vegetables in the Northland and we should take advantage of the hard earned harvest of our local farmers.  If your family has turned their noses up at zucchini in the past, this recipe may turn their heads!  Thanks to my friend Kathy C. from near Barnum, I have fresh basil from her herb garden to use in this recipe!

What you need:

• 6 medium zucchini (about 8 ounces each)
• 1 pound Italian turkey sausage links, casings removed
• 2 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1 cup panko (Japanese) bread crumbs
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup minced fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh oregano or 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil or 2 teaspoons dried basil (thanks Kathy!)
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 3/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Make it:

Preheat the oven to 350°.  Wash and cut each zucchini lengthwise in half. Scoop out pulp, leaving about a 1/4-in. shell, then chop the pulp. Place zucchini shells in a large microwave-safe dish. (I always line mine with aluminum foil for easy clean up afterwards).  In batches, microwave, covered, on high 2-3 minutes or until crisp-tender.

Then in a large skillet, cook the sausage (for spice I use the hot Jimmy Dean or Papa George brands) and zucchini pulp over medium heat 6-8 minutes or until sausage is no longer pink, breaking sausage into crumbles and drain. Stir in tomatoes, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, herbs and pepper. Spoon this mixture into your zucchini shells.

Place in two ungreased 13x9-in. baking dishes. Bake, covered, 15-20 minutes or until zucchini is tender. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, return to oven and bake, once again uncovered, 5-8 minutes longer to melt the cheese.   Enjoy!  Yield: 6 servings.