Stuffed Ronde de Nice

Ronde de Nice- An heirloom summer squash -- okay, basically a round zucchini. They're supposed to be picked when they are the size of golf balls. Guess I didn't get that memo... oops

Ingredients:
2 round squashes 3-6 inches across
sea salt
1 pound ground meat or sausage
5 rosemary sprigs
1 garlic clove
1 small onion
2 TBSP olive or coconut oil
fresh or dried basil
sage to taste
pepper
more sea salt, to taste
2 TBSP tomato paste
1 Cup GF bread Crumbs (crushed plain GF cereal would work too)
1/2 to 1 Cup Parmesan cheese
(optional: chopped spicy pepper of your choice, I used half of a Fresno chili. Spicy!)

Directions:

• wash and then hollow out the squashes, like a pumpkin. Slice off a big lid and scoop out the seeds. Scoop out the flesh until the sides of the squash are about 1/4 inch thick. Set aside the flesh to be chopped up and add into the stuffing later. If there are seeds take them out, or leave them in, it doesn't matter.
• Pour a little sea salt into each hollowed squash, shake it so the salt coats the insides. Then turn them upside down so the moisture drains out as they sit waiting to be stuffed.
• add oil in the bottom of a cast iron skillet and four or five sprigs of fresh rosemary. Just strip off the leaves and add to the pan. add a couple basil leaves. Plus a whole clove of chopped garlic, and half of a chopped onion, brown that.
• add the meat or sausage you chose, some dried sage, a little ground black pepper and salt. And the spicy chopped pepper if you want.
• Cook it
• lower the heat and add a tablespoon or two of tomato paste
• Add the chopped up flesh from scooping out the squashes earlier. cook for about 10 minutes
• More fresh basil leaves, and a 1Cup GF bread crumbs
• Mix well, add the grated Parmesan cheese
• Turn squashes right side up and dry the inside
• Fill with the meat stuffing.
• Put the lids back on (or not) and pop them in a baking pan with an inch (or so) of water.
• bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes
• You can put more cheese on the top and bake another 15 minutes until the top is golden and the squashes are nice and tender.

Eat it all, yes I said all.  It's tender and yummy, even the skin.