tim mazurek, one of my favorite food bloggers, had fellows bloggers stefani greenwood and gilda davidian from a collection of {a really beautiful site. i've since become a fan.} do a guest post on his site lottie + doof. they gave their recipe for muhammara, a middle eastern dip, that made me instantly salivate. they were also giving away copies of their starter recipe collection to the post's first 25 commenters gratis. guess who was comment number 12? the collection, "for {the love of} starters", is composed of recipes from the girls favorite bloggers and thumbing through it my eyes stumbled upon "ricotta stuffed zucchini" and i knew, before i even attempted it, i had a winner.
i have a hard time finding a reason to make appetizers in my own kitchen. the problem is that i never really need a starter with my everyday meals and, as much as i love food, i usually can't stuff more than one course in my belly. i only cook serious meals for my friends and family and even when i'm trying to impress them, hor d'ourves seem like a slightly formal step. thankfully, a smaller portion of this was easily adapted into my lunch last week and though, light, it kept me fueled for hours. zucchini + ricotta + pine nuts = brain food! i didn't end up toasting my pine nuts but i think it would been even better if i had. throw them in a dry pan over medium-low heat for 2-3 minutes. move pan constantly to prevent burning.
before i bow out can i mention how much i love that this is an adaptation of an adaptation? {thank you} i love that this is an adaptation of an adaptation! the original, original recipe is from chef gordon ramsay.
ricotta stuffed zucchinis.
makes 20-35 pieces
adapted from patricia ann {via a collection of}
- 2 zucchinis, ends trimmed
- 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra to drizzle
- 1-2 tbsp. red-wine vinegar
- 1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped
- handful of pine nuts, toasted
- salt & pepper, tt
- using a vegetable peeler, peel through the zucchinis lengthwise, discarding the first few short ones. depending on the thickness of the zucchini, one zucchini makes around 10-15 pieces.
- on a large plate, lay the zucchini strips flat {not overlapping} and drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and red wine vinegar. season with salt & pepper, tt
- cover the plate and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.
- meanwhile, in a bowl, mix the ricotta with the lemon juice. add the basil, parsley and pine nuts. salt and pepper, tt.
- once the zucchini pieces have marinated, take one strip of zucchini and place 1 tsp of the ricotta mixture toward the end of the strip and roll up.
- repeat until you've finished the filling or run out of zucchini.
- arrange the rolls upright on a clean plate, season again tt, and drizzle over a little more oil and a few more pine nuts.
