Z is for Zucchini Ripieni

This is the first of my cooking thru the alphabet series. Like I said that I'll start with the difficult letters and work my way to A. Zucchini Ripieni (stuffed Zucchini) has many variations, it seems like most put meat in theirs but I know I have a vegetarian follower so I though that I'd try to make a few more veggie friendly dishes.

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 lbs zucchini (12 small or 6 large)
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs (approx)
• 2/3 cup cheese, grated
• 2 eggs
• salt and pepper
• 5 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1 cup milk

Directions

Cut ends off zucchini and trim to same length, wash and drain. Boil in lightly salted water for 10 minutes or until half cooked, drain and cool (you may dip in ice water to help cool). Slice in half lengthwise and scoop pulp into a colander to drain a little. Leave about 1/4 inch thick walls in the zucchini, make them like a boat. In a bowl mix pulp, parsley, basil, breadcrumbs, eggs and all of the parmesan except 2 tablespoons. Add salt and pepper to taste, stir well (I only use about 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg, but use to your taste, or leave out). In a saucepan melt 1/4 C of the butter, stir in the flour, gradually stir in milk and stir over low heat until it has thickened and is bubbly.

Gradually stir sauce into zucchini mixture, add more bread crumbs if mixture is not thick enough to spoon. Using a spoon fill zucchini shells with the mixture and arrange them side by side in a shallow buttered baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake at 350 for 1/2 hour, serve hot.