Bluedot Living will regularly run recipes and tips from Pascale Beale, the popular Santa Barbara-based chef, teacher, and cookbook author.
Beale has long been a proponent of cooking with in-season ingredients. “Every season has its own stars, I believe it’s worth waiting for them,” Beale told Bluedot contributing editor Catherine Walthers in this conversation.
She is also passionate about using every last bit of food in your pantry, and in her regular cooking classes (available online), she stresses to make the most of what you’ve already got. “There is so, so much food waste,” she told Walthers. “Learn to make the most of leftovers, the carcass from a roast chicken kept to make stock for example. I like to do something called a TDF (Tour de Frigidaire), something made out of all the little bits and pieces left in the fridge.”
Print
RECIPE: Petit Farcis (Stuffed Spring Vegetables)
- Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients
- 12 small globe zucchini — stem cut off (reserved)
- Olive oil
- 1/2 lemon
- Salt
- Pepper
- 2 large shallots – finely diced
- 8 asparagus stalks – tips cut off and saved, stalks finely sliced
- 1 teaspoon Herbes de Provence or Mediterranean Herb Mix
- 1/3 cup ricotta
- Zest of 1 lemon, plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 8 small yellow squash – entirely peeled into thin strips, then roll up half the strips to form little rosettes
- 1 bunch pea sprouts
- Small handful basil leaves
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Using a small spoon or melon baller, scoop out most of the flesh inside each globe zucchini, leaving a 1/8th inch thick shell. Place the hollowed out shells, and the reserved stems into a small baking dish. Drizzle with a little olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice, a pinch of salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes.
- While the zucchini are roasting, prepare the stuffing. Pour two tablespoons of olive oil into a skillet placed over medium heat. Add the zucchini flesh, shallot and chopped asparagus, Herbes de Provence (or Mediterranean Herb Mix), a pinch of salt and 4-5 grinds of pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes stirring frequently.
- In a bowl combine the ricotta, lemon zest, lemon juice and the cooked vegetable mix.
- Spoon the stuffing into the cooked zucchini shells, reserve any left over stuffing. Return the zucchini to the oven and roast for a further 10 minutes.
- On a large platter spread out the pea sprouts. Scatter the yellow squash strips across the sprouts, and insert the squash rosettes in amongst the strips. If you had any stuffing left over, mound it in the center of the platter.
- Once the zucchini are cooked, place them in the center of the platter. Scatter basil leaves over the dish. Drizzle with a little olive oil and another squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
