Zucchine ripiene
Sonia Squilloni
Le zucchine tonde sembrano fatte per essere riempite. Possono essere tagliate a metà oppure private della parte superiore, svuotate e farcite con un mix di macinata (che può essere di vari tipi di carne) insaporita con formaggio e affettati e legata con l'uovo e la polpa della zucchina stessa. Se la vostra produzione di zucchine tonde abbonda, fate una bella infornata di zucchine ripiene. Potrete congelare quelle che avanzano e averle già pronte per ogni occasione.
Ingredienti:
- 8 zucchine tonde
- 2 etti di macinato di manzo
- 1 uovo
- 2 cucchiai di ricotta
- 2 fette di mortadella (o prosciutto cotto)
- 4 cucchiai di parmigiano grattugiato
- sale
- noce moscata
- olio extravergne d'oliva
Lavate e asciugate le zucchine, togliete la parte superiore e svuotatele con il cucchiaio. Fate insaporire la polpa in una padellina antiaderente con un po' di olio. Mettete le zucchine in una pirofila appena unta e cuocete in forno a 160 gradi per pochi minuti, finché non saranno un po' ammorbidite. Mettete in una terrina l'uovo, la ricotta, le fette di mortadella a pezzetti, il parmigiano grattugiato, salate, aggiungete un pizzico di noce moscata; frullate con il mixer, aggiungete la polpa cotta e la macinata e amalgamate bene. Riempite le zucchine con questo composto, chiudetele con la parte superiore precedentemente tagliata e infornate a 180 gradi per 30 minuti circa. Se avanza l'impasto, 10 minuti prima di spegnere il forno aggiungetelo nella pirofila, formerà un bel sughetto.
Here’s an old Italian recipe for canning peppers — a favorite of my husband. Searching the internet, you’ll come across many variations – all probably good — but here’s a basic recipe to start you on your course. We canned these using the boiling method, though pressure canners might make the process easier. Not sure how, though, as this was as simple to do as it gets!
Unfortunately, I can’t give you too much direction on amounts. Apparently the Italians are like my mother in the sense they do everything “by taste.” I had my husband on hand to do the honors. Undoubtedly you’ll find your own guinea pig!
Hungarian Wax Peppers
Bushel or basket full of Hungarian Wax peppers
Table salt
Canola oil
Oregano
Garlic powder
Now comes the fun part. You must dry your peppers as well as you possibly can. To begin, remove stems from your peppers and then cut them to desired thickness. I cut mine into about 1/8″ rings. Lay them out in a dish and sprinkle table salt liberally over the peppers. Best to remove as many seeds during this process as you can, then let them sit in salt for at least 3 1/2 hours.
This will dehydrate the peppers, leaving your dish full (relatively speaking) of water. Before draining the water, mix the peppers thoroughly in the water to remove any remaining salt. To drain, leave peppers in a colander overnight. We pressed ours with a heavy weight to be sure the water drained out as much as possible. The next morning, I took them from colander to plate, enfolding them in paper towels to absorb any excess water.
Once drained, add oregano, garlic powder and canola oil to taste. Mix well.
Cold-pack the peppers in canning jars and be sure to follow manufacturer’s directions for safe and healthy canning procedures. We boiled water in a large pot, making sure there was at least an inch of water over and above the height of our jars. Also, place a wire rack on bottom of pot, setting jars on top. This allows for water to circulate beneath the jars for complete heating.
While water is heating up, keep your jars and lids warm (helps to avoid glass breakage when full jars are submerged in boiling water). The blue gadget is a funnel to make filling your jars easier. Came in a kit I found at my local grocery store. Also, when filling, you may need to add more oil to completely cover peppers — but don’t overfill. You must leave room for expansion as food heats, so follow directions per your recipe. We left 1/2 inch of space at the top of ours.
Boiling time depends on what you’re canning and how large your jar is, so boil according to instructions. In our case, we used small jars and boiled for approximately 10 – 15 minutes.
Serve with fresh from the bakery Italian bread — or home-baked, if you’re the industrious sort. Enjoy!
Note: Best to refrigerate and consume within 2 – 3 days. For long term storage, low acidic foods (vegetables) should be canned via the pressure canner. Higher acidic foods (fruits and pickled vegetables) may be safely canned and stored using this boiling method.