Italian-Style Stuffed Zucchini Squash (Crock Pot)
"I love summer squash with tomato sauce and Italian herbs, and this healthy vegetarian/vegan dish is so simple to prepare, very filling and delicious. It comes from vegetarian.about.com, and I didn't change too much about it. Originally it called for fresh herbs, but I really don't like using fresh herbs in the crock pot, so I used dried instead, and then just threw a few fresh leaves on top before serving. The toasted pine nuts add a lot to this - I don't recommend omitting them. I was worried about the squash falling apart since I had to leave it in the crock pot well past the suggested cooking time - 9 hours - so I wrapped the zucchini halves in foil before putting them in. It worked great - the squash was very soft, but still together, and the rice was not overcooked at all. The original recipe says it serves four, but I think as a main course it is perfect for two. Putting a little dairy or soy mozzarella or Parmesan on top before serving is nice. This just needs a green salad and maybe some bread to complete the meal. The filling would also probably be great inside bell peppers."
- Ready In:
- 5hrs 15mins
- Ingredients:
- 14
- Serves:
-
2
ingredients
- 1 medium zucchini or 1 medium summer squash, halved lengthwise, with seeds removed
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1⁄4 cup uncooked brown rice
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1⁄8 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
- fresh parsley (optional)
- fresh basil (optional)
- mozzarella cheese (optional) or soy mozzarella cheese (optional)
- parmesan cheese (optional) or vegan parmesan cheese (optional)
directions
- To toast pine nuts, place them in a small nonstick skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally until golden or about 5 minutes.
- Place the zucchini halves in the bottom of an oval shaped slow cooker.
- In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine the tomato sauce and vinegar.
- In another small bowl, combine the onions, garlic, rice, parsley, basil, pepper, along with 2 tablespoons of the tomato sauce-vinegar mixture.
- Fill the zucchini halves with the rice mixture.
- Top with the remaining tomato sauce-vinegar mixture.
- Cover and cook on LOW until the rice is tender, 4 to 6 hours.
- Garnish with the pine nuts, fresh herbs, and cheese.
- Makes 2 main dish servings or 4 side dish servings.
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Reviews
-
I'm so incredibly pleased to be able to come back on here and rate this a 5!!! I did change things somewhat due to what I had on hand. My zucchini was a HUGE zucchini, so I sliced it and used only 1/2. I didn't use the red wine vinegar for personal reasons and didn't have any pine nuts to use. I did use the motz. and parm topping which are loved here. My folks really enjoyed it and my son, well, I knew he wouldn't because he's suddenly developed an attitute about squash. LOL! Thanks so much! -
This was really good! I added ground turkey since we love meat in our house, but I am sure it would be good just as good with out the meat. I will be using this recipe to stuff my bell peppers too!
-
Turned out great. Left out the optional cheese and fresh herbs. This was super easy and fast to prepare- I was able to do it when I came home for lunch and still have time to actually eat lunch. I used part of a really big zucchini that I trimmed down to fit into my 8-quart crockpot. Five hours was a perfect amount of time- the rice in the filling was done and the zucchini was not mushy. I ate it up just in time to go to my evening class. It was tasty and filling and healthy. What more can you ask for? Thanks for posting, this one is a keeper. -
Five stars per the husband, the summer squash hater. I didn't feel like stuffing after slicing 10 bags of bell peppers for the freezer today so I simply sliced the zucchini and added it to the pot with the rest. I also didn't use the pinenuts. I added a small can of sliced mushrooms 7 pepper seafood seasoning, Italian seasoning, and used mixed pepper instead of black. Very tasty.
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
Vino Girl
United States
My husband and I married straight out of college in July of 1992. I work as the Assistant Manager at a wine shop which allows me to drink on the job! (OK, not that much, but it's still a fun job...) Besides helping customers choose wine they will like (and also help with food and wine pairings for their menus), I also get to help with the catering end of the business, so I get to spend a fair amount of time in the kitchen making fun appetizers and beautiful food displays. I also work part-time at the fromagerie next door. So yeah - that means I eat on the job, too. :^D
We live on several peaceful wooded acres on a cute little river in rural NE Wisconsin, with a cranky old-lady Burmese and whatever stray outdoor cats that have decided to adopt us on any given day. The cute puppy in the picture is Jake, our Elhew-bred English Pointer that we brought home on Easter weekend 2007. I've also got 2 painted turtles named Dennis and Fuzz, and a bunch of fish (koi and goldfish, along with the guppies & swordtails in the turtle tank).
I USUALLY eat and cook healthy, but I rarely pass up dessert, either. I do not eat red meat, and try to limit other animal products, too. I love to bake, although I seem to collect a lot of scone and biscotti recipes which I NEVER get around to making. I bake and eat A LOT of cookies and muffins... I almost always reduce the sugar by 1/4 and use whole wheat pastry flour for at least part of the flour. Those two changes do so much to make recipes healthier without compromising taste. I try to reduce fat whenever I can, too, but while I want to eat healthy, I still want to ENJOY what I eat!!!
I seem to give a lot of 4 and 5 star reviews here - I seem to have a pretty good sense of what I like by looking at a recipe before I try it. Thank you to anyone that tries my recipes in return, or photographs them.
Amber:
<img src="http://netnet.net/~mkburie/amber2.jpg">
........And a grown up Jake (one year old in January 2008) :) -
<img src="http://netnet.net/~mkburie/JAKE111307.JPG">
Charlotte (May 27, 1992-June 1, 2009):
<img src="http://netnet.net/~mkburie/Charlott.jpg">
Ashley: Adopted October 8, 1996 - Passed Away January 6, 2009
<img src="http://netnet.net/~mkburie/ashley2.jpg">
Mike: September 26, 1994 - March 19, 2004<img src="http://netnet.net/~mkburie/mike1997-lr.JPG">....
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