The Consumption: Veggie Boats of Flavor

The zucchinni dream boats were delicious!  Most Italian meals I have cooked in the past consisted of dough, spaghetti sauce, lots of cheese, and pepperonis.  For this meal, I had to research how to "hollow" out a zuchinni before I began preparation.  I imagined it being something like carving a pumpkin.  To my surprise, it was relatively easy to make each zuch in the shape of a boat using a long narrow spoon.  The pulp scooped right out.  I filled each boat with the mixture of tomato sauce and placed in the crock.

Before the zuchinni was finished slow cookin', I decided to toast the pine nuts.  I placed some tin foil on a small baking pan and scattered the pine nuts.  Then I placed in the oven on the highest rack, making sure they would toast nicely.  Unfortunately, within 10 secs, they all caught on FIRE.  Yes, burning flames burst out of the stove when I opened the oven.  I have learned pine nuts contain oil (like most nuts), and when heated to a very high temp, they can catch on fire.  Luckily, the flames dissipated immediately when I removed them from my oven.  I wish I had a live-in photographer to capture the terror on my face when my first small kitchen fire erupted.

I served the Veggie Boats with some angel hair pasta and garnished with blackened pine nuts, fresh mozzerella, parm, and garlic bread.  The meal was a simple Italian dish that was easy to make on a busy weekday.  The flavors were all familiar and delicious, except for the burnt popcorn taste of the toasted pine nuts.  For my next attempt, I will use black olives.

Don't BURN your nuts!

Tips & Tricks

• I hollowed out zuchinni for this? (Chef Tiffany, this one's for you!)

- Chef Mimi