Farro & Carrot Stuffed Zucchini

A colorful, fiber-rich entrée or side dish for when zucchini are in abundance

Prep Time: 30 min    Bake Time: 45-60 minutes

WHAT YOU NEED:

4 medium zucchini or 2 large zucchini (about 3.5 - 4  lbs. total)

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 cup shredded carrots (about 2-3 carrots)

2 cups cooked farro (see Tip below)

2 tsp. dried oregano or 2 Tbsp. fresh oregano, chopped

½ tsp. salt (or to taste)

¼ tsp. ground black pepper

½ cup parmesan cheese

TOPPING:

½ cup homemade fresh bread crumbs (or use panko bread crumbs)

Reserved parmesan cheese

Drizzle of olive oil

MAKING IT:

Remove stem ends of zucchini and slice zucchini in half lengthwise.  With spoon or ice cream scoop, remove the center seed pulp. Roughly chop zucchini pulp and set aside.

Heat olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium heat.  Add chopped onions; sauté until soft and translucent.  Add garlic stirring often to prevent it from burning.  Add zucchini pulp and shredded carrots; sauté for about 5-10 minutes over medium heat until most of the liquid is gone.  Remove pan from heat. Stir in cooked farro, herbs, salt, pepper and about half of the cheese. 

Preheat oven to 375◦F.   Arrange zucchini halves in 1 or 2 glass baking dishes.  Spoon filling evenly into each zucchini half.   Cover and bake for 30-40 minutes until zucchini are becoming tender.

Combine bread crumbs, remaining cheese in a small bowl.  Remove foil and sprinkle topping over each zucchini half. Drizzle olive oil over bread crumb topping. Continue baking for 15-20 minutes until zucchini are tender and topping is slightly browned. Makes 8 side dish servings or 4 main dish servings.

NUTRITION:

Nutrition Information per serving (1/8 recipe; side dish serving): 180 Calories; 7g Total Fat; (2g Sat Fat; 0g Trans Fat); 5mg Chol; 260mg Sodium; 23g Total Carb; (4g Fiber; 6g Sugars); 8g Protein; 10% DV Calcium; 10% DV Potassium

TIPS:

There are several types of farro available. Generally, 1 cup dry farro yields about 2-3 cups cooked farro. Whole grain farro generally takes 40-45 minutes to cook. Pearled or semi-pearled farro, which as some of the outer bran removed, cooks in about 10-30 minutes, depending on the variety. Whichever you farro choose, follow package directions for cooking.

If you like, add an egg to the filling before baking to add protein and bind the filling ingredients together.

Variation: Add some cooked, crumbled Italian sausage to the filling if you like!