Recipe

Julia Busuttil Nishimura's stuffed zucchini with pork mince and potatoes for Maggie Beer's Big Mission

Prep time: 
30
Cook time: 
60
Skill level: 
Medium
Serves: 
6
Julia Busuttil Nishimura's maltese stuffed zucchini with pork and potatoes served on a plate

This Maltese recipe uses accessible ingredients and can be scaled up for a nursing home kitchen, as per the requirements of Maggie Beer's Chef Challenge. (ABC: Harriet Spark)

Julia Busuttil Nishimura is a cook, author and teacher. Her work celebrates simple ingredients, seasonal produce and the joys of coming together at the table.

She's the author of two cookbooks, Ostro and A Year of Simple Family Food. She lives in Melbourne with her husband, Nori, and sons Haruki and Yukito.

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Maltese stuffed zucchini with potatoes, also known Qarabaghli Mimli Fil-forn, is a comforting and nourishing dish that's very close to my heart.

It's a dish dedicated to my mum and I'm sharing the recipe as part of Maggie Beer's Chef Challenge.

Maggie has invited chefs from across Australia to share a dish that's connected to their heart and tastebuds and also high in protein and budget conscious. The recipe must also allow for scaling up in aged care homes.

We should be treating older people with so much worth and respect and that's why I'm joining the Chef Challenge.

I believe older Australians are just as deserving of beautiful, home-cooked meals as the rest of us.

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In my childhood, food was a connection to my family. I loved helping my mum cook in the kitchen.

And growing up Maltese, everything you think and talk about relates to food.

My mum was a big encourager in my love for food. To me, the act of feeding people is such an act of love and I feel like I've taken that on from mum too.

Julia and her mum Rachel hug as they stand in their kitchen, while their stuffed zucchini dish sits on the benchtop

Julia Busuttil Nishimura joined Maggie Beer's Chef Challenge to cook this family recipe that she dedicates to her mum, Rachel. (ABC: Harriet Spark)

Food is so important to feel good in terms of a connection.

It's not just what you eat, it's how you eat and share that food that shouldn't be lost as we get older.

I was quite young when my grandmother passed away, but before that she eventually went into aged care, which I remember being a real struggle for my mum.

Those final days before my grandmother passed away were hard, too. But I still remember how much care the people who worked at the home showed her and us.

A birds-eye-view shot of Julia and her mum's hands stuffing the zucchini's with the mince filling

Julia's dish which is high in protein and full of flavour is also an ode her Maltese heritage. (ABC: Harriet Spark)

Australia's food icon, Maggie Beer, leads an ambitious world first social experiment to transform the meals and dining experience at an aged care home. Stream Maggie Beer's Big Mission now on ABC iview.

Julia Busuttil Nishimura's stuffed zucchini with pork mince and potatoes for Maggie Beer's Big Mission

Prep time: 
30
Cook time: 
60
Skill level: 
Medium
Serves: 
6

Ingredients

For the stuffed zucchini: 

For the potatoes: 

To finish:

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 190°C fan-forced.
  2. Halve the zucchini lengthwise and use a spoon to scoop out the flesh, setting it aside. If necessary, cut a little from the base of each half to help them sit flat.
  3. Finely chop half of the scooped out zucchini flesh and place in a bowl with the pork mince, pancetta, garlic, cheese, mixed spice and egg. Season to taste and mix well with clean hands.
  4. Spoon the filling into each zucchini half. Set aside.
  5. Choose a large baking dish with high sides and grease with olive oil, then layer in the potatoes, onions and fennel seeds.
  6. Dilute the Kunserva or tomato paste with 100ml of boiling water. Mix well and then pour over the potatoes.
  7. Place the stuffed zucchini onto the potatoes, sprinkle  some breadcrumbs onto each half and drizzle with plenty of olive oil.
  8. Season with salt and pepper and bake in the oven for about 1 hour or until the potatoes are tender and a little crunchy.
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