Shared by Jessica Elisheva Emerson
Shared by Jessica Elisheva Emerson
Stuffed Zucchini with Sour Cream for Sukkot
Yield: 8 servingsTime: 1 hour
Stuffed Zucchini with Sour Cream for Sukkot
Yield: 8 servingsTime: 1 hourFamily Journey
Denmark and HungaryNYC & ChicagoPuerto Rico & Tucson
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Tucson
“There are very few food traditions on the Jewish side of the family,” explains Jessica Elisheva Emerson, the author of the recently published “Olive Days.” Her mother is a Jew by choice and her father’s family, which traces its roots to Hungary, assimilated as they settled in the United States. So, “my parents had to develop their own food traditions,” she adds.
Her mother cobbled together recipes from Jewish friends to create her own recipe for Passover and Shabbat. Meanwhile, her great-aunt Sally’s creamy ziti salad was repurposed for Shavuot and “my dad would often stop at a candy shop on the way home on Fridays and leave beautifully wrapped packages of sweets at our Shabbat dinner places,” Jessica explains.
She has continued that culinary journey, learning to make Hungarian dishes like paprikash, which she says her great-great-grandmother may have cooked, and creating her own cooking traditions that feel connected to the Jewish holidays. During Sukkot, Jessica and her husband host friends and family often, including for a big open house with guests spilling out of their sukkah and into the yard. In a nod to the season and the custom of serving stuffed vegetables for the holiday, she always makes her Danish grandmother’s recipe for zucchini stuffed with sharp cheddar cheese and sour cream.
“It came from the non-Jewish side of the family, but it's the stuffed vegetable dish that people in my family have been eating in my sukkah for a long, long time. It's just a different kind of story,” Jessica says. “I think it’s important to talk about.”
Cook’s note: Boiling the zucchini for just a few minutes ensures they’re soft and pliable enough to scoop. Jessica adds that any extra filling tastes great over rice, or scrambled with some eggs.
Ingredients
Ingredients:
- Four medium zucchinis, ½” trimmed off each end
- 2 tablespoons good quality salted butter
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 ¼ cups freshly shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- ¼ cup full-fat sour cream
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Paprika
Preparation
Step 1
Fill a 6 quart pot with water and heavily salt it. Bring to a boil and add the zucchinis to the water. Cook for 6-8 minutes, until the zucchini is slightly softened. Meanwhile, grease a 9” x 13” casserole dish.
Step 2
Drain the pot and let the zucchinis cool until you can easily handle them. Halve each zucchini and use a melon baller or a tablespoon to scoop out the flesh, leaving the shell intact to hold the filling. Finely chop the zucchini flesh. Add the chopped zucchini to a cheesecloth or clean towel and squeeze out all the water. Set aside.
Step 3
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Arrange the zucchini shells in the casserole dish (if your squash are very large, you might need two dishes), nestling them close together.
Step 4
Melt the butter in a small saute pan over medium heat until nearly browned, around 2 minutes. Add the diced onion and chopped zucchini flesh to the pan, sautéing for 8-10 minutes until fragrant and golden, and stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.
Step 5
Season the vegetables with salt and pepper to taste, then stir in one cup of the shredded cheese and the sour cream, stirring until the cheese is melted and the mixture is well combined.
Step 6
Carefully spoon the filling into the zucchini shells. Use the remaining ¼ cup of cheese to sprinkle evenly over the stuffed squash, then dust lightly with paprika.
Step 7
Bake for 25 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and the cheese is melted. Turn the oven to broil, and broil for 5-7 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and melted. Use tongs to gently lift the stuffed zucchini from the dish for serving. Serve hot.
