Easy stuffed zucchini

Business first: A few people have asked how they can submit guest posts. Please send them to traveleatlove2009@hotmail.com . I am excited to read and post them, and if you ever need a guest post in return, please just let me know!

I hope you are enjoying your Saturday. Mine has gone well so far, and by the time this posts, I will be having dinner with old friends. My run was kind of awful, but I dug deep and did the hill workout I planned. I run along the waterfront and do a hill workout on the side streets of Southie, where Tina will be moving soon. It is a VERY hilly area in some parts, and it is a lot of fun to run up one street, down another, and on and on, giving the legs and heart a killer workout. After that I had half of a Green Monster and lots of water. I wasn’t feelin food, so I brought one of my Pro bars to the shelter with me in case I got nibbly while dog walking. Overall I spent 2 hours walking 6 dogs varying in size from about 15 to 100 lbs. It was so much fun! I also discovered a grocery store near the shelter in Jamaica Plain that I NEED to go back to. The area has a very large population of people who come from a variety of Latin American and Caribbean countries, and the grocery store was so cool! So many different tropical fruits and veggies, cheeses, tortillas, hot sauces, flan, etc. It was so neat! I just love stepping into a neighborhood and feeling like I have traveled to a whole new place.

We had lunch at Myers + Chang to try out their new-ish dim sum menu. Obviously it was delicious, because everything there is. I don’t have any photos because I am trying to stay away from cell phone pics, but we had the Asian pickles, the Thai ginger chicken salad, peanut dan dan noodles, and corn and prawn fritters with sriracha aioli. I feel like I ate a little too much, but it was just so good. The pickled veggies were so fresh and crunchy and tangy. We always just feel really good about everything we eat at Myers + Chang, and the staff is so nice. Joanne Chang herself came in while we were there (celebrity sighting!) ; she really is involved in her businesses which I think makes them as good as they are.

I had a lovely shower with Good Health Natural Products’ shea butter body wash. It was delightfully smooth and smelled great. The smell reminded me of my nana in a good way. She always had the best natural soap around when we were growing up.

Anyway, I wanted to post a recipe favorite of mine to help you use up those zucchini or summer squashes. I hope you enjoy it!

Stuffed zucchini

1 large zucchini, cut in half lengthwise, seeds scooped out

3/4 cup goat’s cheese (or tofu would work too!)

a few spoonfuls of breadcrumbs or crushed multi grain Wheat Thins, which I used this last time

garlic! (I used 3 cloves, but its up to you)

1/4 cup walnuts

1 tsp olive oil

Pre heat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly coat the cut part of the zucchini with olive oil, and put in the oven to get soft, about 20 minutes. While the zucchini is cooking, chop and lightly sauté garlic in olive oil. Take cooked garlic and goat cheese, put in a food processer or blender, and puree until smooth and creamy.  Transfer to a bowl, and fold in the breadcrumbs.

Once the zucchini is soft enough for you, remove from the oven and plate. Scoop goat cheese into the zucchini halves, and pat down with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle walnuts on top, and enjoy!

(with Dr. Praeger’s broccoli bites, not recommended)

The rest of Saturday will be some cleaning and updating my iPod with new Spanish podcasts for my walk to and from work. I am looking forward to a lazy Sunday. . . perhaps some brunch and open markets. We shall see! G’nite! 😉