I make these all the time and you can just about throw anything in them. One real time saver-cut zucchini in half take a microwave safe dish and put in a little water. Put zucchini cut side down. Cook on high 5 minutes. Varies with microwave. Then proceed with recipe. I always cook mine in my toaster oven and put on broil the last 5 minutes or so.
This is a good mix of ingredients and we will make these again. It would have been far to soggy if I hadn't drained and squeezed the zucchini meat in a colander and paper towels. Instead of closing them in foil I made small foil boats and cooked the zucchini with the top exposed. This made them crunchy and tasty on the top.
Great and very versatile! I used a leftover (cooked) burger patty instead of bacon no chiles and eyeballed the rest. I cooked the zucchini in the microwave and to avoid the mushiness other reviewers experienced I drained the scooped pulp on paper towels before chopping (it was real wet). I also wrapped them separately in foil packets then cooked them in a 450 degree oven on a baking sheet for 15 minutes. Will make over and over again.
I'm writing with an admitted aversion to basically all squash dishes so I'll concentrate on the nuts and bolts of this recipe. I read many of the reviews and consequently pre-cooked the zucchini w/about a 1/4" water in the microwave. I tried to squeeze the water from the removed pulp (tough to do especially in a hurry) by squishing it against a strainer with paper towels. The I poured on the filling ingredients (really any tasty combination will work as long as it disguises the squash flavor/texture!). The items in the recipe work fine but if I ever venture into squash territory again I'd opt for stronger add-in flavors - Mexican (chorizo & cheese) Italian (hearty marinara & strong parmesean) or maybe more Mediterranean - assorted olives sauteed mushroom blend feta or chevre. The most important thing is to find a way to keep these boats from getting soggy. One reviewer recommended broiling the cut/scooped halves w/ a bit of EVOO - I think this would give a crispier canoe to fill than the microwave technique in water. I salute those of you who enjoy squash stuff; I encourage the rest of you to try this - a good and flavorful way to ease yourself into this vegetable group!
Instead of putting these on the grill I put them under the boiler. Turned out great! I boiled the zucchini for 10 minutes instead of 5 prepared as directed except I reserved the cheese and sprinkled it over the top. Broiled for about 7 minutes -- until the cheese was brown and bubbly. Yum!
I omitted the green chilis (jalapeno is good enough) and omitted the olives (my family doesn't like them) My grill had no probane so I did this in my oven unwrapped the foil last cple minutes under the broiler to get a little crispier. Delicious will make often.
Wonderful dish! I baked in the oven w/o any foil @ 400 for 18 min. Added italian croutons(used no salt) and chopped cooked bacon. A
These were delicious! I didn't add any tomatoes since my husband hates them so to compensate I increased all of the other veggies a little bit. I also left out the bacon so that it was a vegetarian dish. I used red onion and added two cloves of freshly minced garlic. Like other reviewers I just used breadcrumbs instead of bread. Lastly I used a little cheddar cheese but mostly I put in feta which was very good. I did cook mine on the grill and used another reviewers suggestion of making open "boats" instead of enclosing the zucchini in the foil. It was not mushy at all this way. I'll definitely make this again! It could easily be baked in the oven so this is going to become a year round side dish in my family:)
I've made these before and they are great. We use sweet Italian sausage instead of bacon and they are a big hit.
Neither of us cared for this at all. Lots of prep work with a lot of ingredients. Maybe that's the problem - there's just too much going on. Just too fussy too mushy and an unusual flavor.
