Name: Easy Stuffed Zucchini Boats with Nduja & Ricotta
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h 15 min
Total time: 1 h 45 min
Yield: 1
Ingredients: 2 medium fresh zucchini, washed and halved lengthways; 1 tbsp olive oil; 1 tsp oregano; 1 egg, whisked (optional); 250g cherry tomatoes, diced; 200g nduja sausage, diced; 100g ricotta cheese; 100g sourdough breadcrumbs; Mozzarella cheese, grated; Parmesan cheese, grated; Black pepper; Sea salt

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Here at The Art of Growing, I’m always trying to find ways to add more flavour to recipes. Be it a simple Sourdough Bread or Thai Beef Noodle Soup you bet ya bottom dollar there is flavour! And this Stuffed Zucchini with Nduja and Ricotta is no different. It’s packed full of flavour, with the spiciness of the nduja to the sourness of my homemade sourdough breadcrumbs and let’s not forget the richness of the ricotta to balance it all out. If you’re a home grower, 90% of the ingredients are (or can be) homegrown and homemade.

Summer is zucchini season for us and without fail, we end up inundated with big, juicy zucchini with the most vivid dark green colour (I wish I could recreate this colour in a fabric!). I enjoy cooking with zucchini because it’s so versatile. If it’s not stuffed then it’s in a slice, roasted, or cooked in butter with garlic, broccoli and carrots🤤 AND if you have picky kids, why not sneak some grated zucchini into your next spaghetti bolognese? It’s the perfect way to add fresh vegetables to their diet. I could go on, but let’s get to the main attraction!

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Stuffed Zucchini with Nduja & Ricotta Ingredients

2 medium fresh zucchini (bonus points if grown from your garden!), washed and halved lengthways

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp oregano

250g cherry tomatoes, diced

1 egg, whisked (optional)

200g nduja sausage, diced

100g ricotta cheese

100g sourdough breadcrumbs

Mozzarella cheese, grated

Parmesan cheese, grated

Black pepper

Sea salt

Recipe Instructions

Preheat your oven or smoker to 390f / 200c degrees

Grab a spoon and hollow out the middle of your zucchini so it looks like a boat. I find starting with smaller scoops helps to stop going all the way through and creating holes.

Combine the olive oil cherry tomatoes, nduja sausage, ricotta cheese, sourdough breadcrumbs, egg and oregano in a large bowl and mix until combined. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Begin filling the zucchini shells with your stuffing mix to create a dome-like shape on top.

Line a large baking dish with a baking sheet /parchment paper, place the zucchini boats on top and cover them with aluminium foil. Bake in a preheated oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Remove foil from the tray and sprinkle plenty of cheese on top of each stuffed zucchini. The quantity depends solely on your taste requirements. Bake, uncovered for another 15 to 20 minutes until the cheese has cooked through.

Serve immediately. If there are any leftovers (I highly doubt it!), store them in an airtight container in the fridge.

Notes

Don’t want to waste your zucchini pulp? Add it back into your stuffing mix OR feed it to your chickens or worms!

Run out of sourdough breadcrumbs? Thats ok! You can use panko breadcrumbs or normal breadcrumbs.

You can substitute nduja for normal Italian sausage or pork mince. Add spices like fennel seeds, red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning or fresh herbs.

Tomatoes can be substituted for red or green capsicum/bell peppers. The flavours tie in quite nicely.

You can omit the cheese listed and use your own combinations or goat cheese. This recipe doesn’t discriminate on taste!

While the preference for this recipe is to use a smoker, you don’t need it. A normal oven will suffice.

If you choose not to cover the zucchini boats whilst cooking, reduce the cooking time to 40 minutes and monitor every 5 minutes until it reaches your desired crust.

nduja, ricotta and tomato stuffed zucchini on blue plate

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