Stripey green marrows — courgettes’ overgrown cousins — are, admittedly, not the most delicious of vegetables. But if you choose the smaller ones, cut them in half and fill them with a clever concoction of vegetables or meat, they make the perfect boat-like vessels for leftovers, transforming the unremarkable into something special.
Roasted Marrow with a Ratatouille filling
Serves 4 with a side salad
1 marrow
150ml stock (vegetable or chicken)
Olive oil for cooking
3 brown or red onions
3 cloves of garlic
5 sprigs of thyme
2 aubergines, sliced
1 x 400g tin cherry tomatoes
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
Pinch of sugar
2 red peppers, grilled and skinned
40g breadcrumbs
70g goat’s cheese
Basil leaves to garnish
Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas Mark 4. Cut the marrow in half lengthways and scoop out and discard the seeds. Place the marrow halves in a baking dish with a ladle of stock and season with salt. Cover with aluminium foil and bake in the oven for 45-60 minutes. Check the dish every 15 minutes or so; you want it to be tender but still holding its shape.
In the meantime, make the ratatouille. Heat the oil in a medium-sized pan.
Peel and thinly slice the onions and peel and mince the garlic. Add both to the pan, along with the leaves from the sprigs of thyme. Cook for 10 minutes on a low to medium heat until tender but not brown. Remove and set aside.
Add a couple more tablespoons of oil to the pan and cook the aubergines in two batches, getting a little colour on the outside and tossing until soft. If they become too dry, add a little more oil. Add the tomatoes, vinegar and pinch of sugar and return the onions and garlic to the pan with the peppers. Cook on a low heat for a further 10 minutes.
Spoon the filling into the marrow ‘boats’ and sprinkle with breadcrumbs and goat’s cheese. Place under a hot grill until the crumbs are crisp and the goat’s cheese melts. Top with basil and serve.
