Vegetable-stuffed zucchini in tomato sauce

Ingredients

• 2 medium zucchini (about 600 g)
• 1 green bell pepper
• 3-4 green onions
• 1 stalk green garlic
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 150 g zucchini flesh
• 250 ml water
• 2 tablespoons rice
• 5 tablespoons peeled diced tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons breadcrumbs
• 1 egg
• 500 ml tomato juice
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
• 10 g fresh basil

Preparation

1. Wash the zucchini, peel them if you like, and cut each one into three pieces. Scoop out the centers, leaving about 1 cm at the bottom of each piece. 2. Finely chop the bell pepper, green onions and green garlic. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a pan and sauté the vegetables for 8 minutes, until softened. 3. Finely chop 150 g of zucchini flesh and add it to the pan. Add 250 ml of water and the rinsed rice; cook for 10 minutes, stirring now and then. Stir in the peeled tomatoes, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper, then cook for another 5 minutes. 4. Take the pan off the heat and let the filling cool for 20 minutes. Mix the breadcrumbs and egg into the cooled filling. 5. Fill the six zucchini pieces and arrange them in a lidded ovenproof dish. Pour the tomato juice over the top and add the sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Gently stir the sauce with a teaspoon and sprinkle the chopped basil over the zucchini and into the sauce. 6. Cover the dish and bake at 190–200 °C for 50 minutes, until the zucchini are tender. Halfway through, take the dish out and spoon some sauce over the pieces. 7. Serve warm, on its own or with sour cream.