Love Food Hate Waste Cookery Week 4

Last week as the final class for the Earl Shilton Community Centre.

As I have shared with them my recipes, I asked them to share theirs as I have not have many chance of tasting local home cooked food. So here is my chance to go local.

The participants  made Stuffed Marrow with Crispy  Bacon and Lemon and Ginger Pudding.



 

The stuffed marrow reflects the current spring seasonal vegetables. Marrows are now available in the high street stalls as well as in super-markets. Part of reducing waste and consuming wisely is to eat  seasonally. Fruits and vegetables in season are fresh, cheap and easily available.  The filling consists of rice, sweet peppers ( also in season and cheap and cheerful, adding colour to the dish), bacon and mushroom. The marrow was delicious and I could do with a second helping. The filling tasted like creamy risotto. The combination of the bacon, rice and vegetable was lovely.

The pudding was decadent, not for everyday consumption as it is really tasty and rich. As it is so good, I have to discipline myself not to make it too often. I will make it this week when I have my Women Division Members around for a  meeting.

Here is the recipe for the stuffed marrows.

Note:

We actually cut the marrow into rings and remove the skin. However, it can be cooked as a whole marrow and cut to pieces to serve. We topped the stuffed marrow rings with some left-over cheese from the cheese sauce as we did not want to waste the cheese.

Stuffed Marrow with Crispy Bacon

Ingredients

1 Marrow about 1 kg

1 ¼ cups Vegetable stock

½ cup Long-grain white rice

250g Smoked bacon, cubed

½ cup Chopped mixed peppers

1 cup Mushrooms – chopped

1 medium Onion – peeled and chopped

½ tsp Salt, or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper

Method:

1. Bring the stock to the boil and stir in the rice. Reduce the heat, cover and cook gently for about 20-30 minutes, or until rice is cooked and the stock is absorbed.
2. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200C. cut a slice about 3cm thick from each end of the marrow and, with a dessert spoon, remove all the seeds to leave a hollow along its entire length. Set Aside
3. Fry the bacon until crispy then add the onion and cook until just soft. Stir in the peppers and mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add the cooked rice. Season well and mix together. Spoon this rice filling into the marrow, pressing it in well.
4. Place the marrow in the centre of the foil, wrap it up tightly and place it in a roasting pan. Bake in the oven for 1 – 1 ¼ hour, or until the marrow is tender.
5. Remove from the oven, unwrap and leave it to stand for 5 minutes. Cut into 12 even slices and arrange on a serving dish or on individual plates.
6. Optional: can be served with cheese sauce. The ladies made their own.

Recipe courtesy of Annelize Tantum