Stuffed Green Peppers and Zucchini Moroccan Style

Here is a version of Moroccan style stuffed vegetables with any kind of ground meat that you like.  It is light and very tasty.  I used green peppers and squash, but you can use zucchini and tomatoes as well.  Those are the vegetables that I had on hand. This recipe is adapted from the book, The Food of Morocco by Tess Mallos.

You will need:

4 zucchini
2 green peppers
6 tomatoes

You can use any combination that you like.  Halve the zucchin lengthways.  Scoop out the centers and leave about 1/2 inch around the edges.  Slice the tops off of the tomatoes.  Scoop out the centers and rub the pulp through a sieve into a bowl. Add this to the tomato sauce. Remove the skins from the other two tomatoes and slice thinly.  Set aside.  Cut the peppers in half.  Remove the seeds and the membranes.


Ingredients for stuffing:

2 tbs olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp ginger
2 dashes of cinnamon
salt/pepper to taste
1 lb of ground meat, lamb, turkey, or chicken
1 tbs Italian parsley, chopped
2 tsp chopped mint
1/4 cup of short grain rice
1 cup of water

Put the oil in a large skillet on medium heat.  When it is hot, add the onion and saute for about 5 minutes.  Then add the garlic, ginger, cinnamon, pepper, salt, parsley, mint, and meat.  Mix well.  Cook until the meat is brown.  Try to break the meat into small pieces. Add 1 cup of water and bring to a boil.  Then add the rice.  Cover and simmer over low heat until the rice is tender and the water has been absorbed.  Set aside.

Ingredients for the tomato sauce:

1 tbs olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cumin
1 large tomato, peeled and chopped
2 tbs tomato paste
1 tsp sugar
1 tbs lemon or lime juice
1/2 cup of water

Mix all of the ingredients together and set aside.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly fill the vegetables with the stuffing.  Fill the bottom of a zucchini and cover with an unfilled top.  Secure them with toothpicks. Fill the tomatoes and replace the tops.  Fill the green peppers.  Arrange in an ovenproof dish.  Add the tomato slices to the tops of the vegetables. (I forgot to do this part, sorry) Pour in the sauce, cover with foil and bake for 50 minutes, then remove the foil, baste with sauce and cook for 10 minutes or until tender.  Enjoy!