Italian Cucuzza Stew

Ntune2food's Note:

I grew up with this recipe. My grandmother would sometimes cook hers without the ground meat and would add a handful of fettucini to the pot.

• Total Time: 1 hrs 5 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 10

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large red onion, sliced
• 2 -3 celery ribs, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups carrots, sliced
• 4 -5 garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
• 1 cucuzza, peeled and cubed
• 1 (28 ounce) can whole tomatoes
• 1 fresh bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 6 cups water
• salt & fresh ground pepper

Directions:

1. Brown the ground beef in a skillet, drain and set aside.
2. In a large dutch oven, add the olive oil and sauté the onion, celery, carrot, and garlic for about 4-5 minutes, or until the onions are translucent.
3. Add the ground beef to the pot along with the can of whole tomatoes, add the cucuzza, and the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil and simmer, uncovered for around 45 minutes or until the squash is cooked.

Reviews

[earthformed]

Yesterday I tried this recipe and it was a hit with everyone in the family - even my 2 year old! Like AuntMare mine turned out very juicy but that is just the way we like it. I used ground regular sausage, fresh lemon thyme from my garden and added fennel stalks and fronds (also from the garden). I had run out of tomatoes but had one container of frozen tomatillos and one of tomatoes that added up to the 28 oz and it turned out just great. The only thing I think I would change or add next time is to use chicken/beef stock or broth or at least add boullion to add some richness to the broth. Super yummy, went back for seconds and probably would ahave made myself sick eating it if I didn't control myself. Thanks so much for your grandmother's recipe.

[AuntMare]

I made this tonight and my husband ate until he almost popped. Mine turned out more like soup, very juicy, but the flavor was excellent. Someone gave us the cucuzza and I searched for days trying to find a recipe that would please everyone in the family. This was it. Thanks for posting.

[Kim D.]

This was delicious and so easy to make. I followed the directions exactly, but had a very large cucuzza so only used half of it. I served this stew with garlic bread, but I think it would be nice over rice or pasta too. I had leftovers for lunch today and the flavor was even better the second day. I'm always searching for recipes to use up my cucuzza squash, so I was really excited to find this recipe. Thanks Ntune2food for posting your grandmother's recipe!