Recipe: Bolognese with Crispy Cheesy Courgette Batons (Gluten Free)

Greetings, today I have a new recipe for you. It is gluten free and can very easily be made in vegetarian or non-vegetarian versions. I made it for me and my husband last night and it's very tasty and much lighter in the stomach than pasta.

Bolognese with Crispy Cheesy Courgette (Zucchini) Batons (Gluten Free)

Wittegen Press

FREE
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Ingredients

serves 2 or 3

• 250g Turkey Breast Mince (sub quorn or soya mince for veggie version or even a can of pulses if you prefer)
• 2-3 large flat mushrooms (you can use smaller mushrooms, but the big ones have more flavour)
• 500g tomato passata
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 stock cubes (I use beef Oxo, if you are going veggie use vegetable stock cubes and if you are going gluten free use Knorr not Oxo)
• 3 sweet roasted red peppers (I get mine in a jar like this, but you can buy and roast your own - these are not chilli peppers)
• glug of sherry (optional)
• 1 tbsp oil (olive, sunflower and coconut are all good)
• 2.5 medium courgettes (zucchini)
• 50g (1/2 cup) ground almonds (aka almond flour or almond meal)
• 50g (1/2 cup) grated Parmesan (for veggie option use a vegetarian substitute hard Italian cheese because Parmesan uses animal rennet - check the packaging to be sure)
• 1 tbsp salt (don't worry, most of this is washed off)
• 1.5 tspn Italian seasoning (store bough or here is a recipe)
• 1/2 tspn garlic powder
• 1 large egg

Instructions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 220C or 425F.
2. Cut 2 of the courgettes (zucchini) into 2.5 to 3 inch lengths (I cut the ends off mine and cut them in half). Then cut each length into 8 pieces along their length so you have batons.
3. Place the batons in a colander and sprinkle with the salt. Leave for between 30 mins and 1 hr to drain all excess water. (1 hr is better, but 30 mins will do at a push).
4. When your courgette batons are almost finished draining, chop the mushrooms into bite sized pieces and the remaining 1/2 courgette into thin rounds that are then divided into quarters.
5. Add the oil and garlic to a deep frying pan and gently heat.
6. Add the mushrooms and the courgette quarters (NOT the batons) and cook until they are softening and have given up their water.
7. Drain (if from a jar) and chop the peppers into bite sized pieces and also add to the pan. 
8. Add the mince and cook through.
9. Crumble the stock cubes straight into the pan and stir through. (If you like your food with some bite you can add a little chilli too).
10. Add the passata to the pan, rinse out the passata container with a little water and also add.
11. Add the sherry and 1/5 tsp Italian seasoning. (My peppers come in brine, so I find I don't need to add any more salt at this point, if you are roasting your own a little salt or a splash of Worcestershire sauce (not veggie) or soy sauce (Tamari is gluten free) is good).
12. Bring to the boil and turn down to a simmer - allow to cook gently while you are dealing with the rest of the dish (after 10 mins with the lid off the liquid will have reduced so it it thickening, put the lid on).
13. Mix the ground almonds, Parmesan, 1 tsp of the Italian seasoning and the garlic powder in a flat bottomed, shallow bowl or plate.
14. Crack the egg into a bowl and whisk it.
15. Line a large baking tray with grease proof paper or baking parchment or a silicon baking sheet.
16. Wash the courgette spears under the tap to remove the salt, then pat them dry with kitchen paper towels.
17. Dip each courgette spear into the egg, then coat in the almond and cheese mixture, before placing on the baking sheet.
18. Cook for 30 minutes in the oven, turning once during cooking, until the crumb coating is golden brown all over and the courgette inside is tender.

Serve with the bolognese in a bowl and the courgette spears on the side so people can dip them in, or not, as they see fit :).