Cajun-Style Zucchini Casserole With Minced Meat and Bacon

A sweetish, full-flavoured dish which is relatively easy to make. Inspired by the Bayou Cook Book by Thomas J. Holmes, Jr. (specifically the stuffed eggplant recipe, although little remains of the original recipe). The measurements for the worcester sauce and molasses are approximate, so be sure to taste it and adjust as necessary. Also, instead of ground cloves you can use 2 whole cloves (but be sure to remove them or warn your guests).

• Ready In: 1 hr 20 mins
• Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 250  g minced beef
• 6  slices bacon
• 1⁄2 zucchini
• 1  large  sweet anaheim chili
• 2  onions
• 1  large  fleshy tomatoes
• 1  slice  bread (soaked in milk or water and then squeezed dry)
• 2  tablespoons molasses (to taste)
• 1  tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (to taste)
• 2  garlic cloves
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1⁄2 cup  grated cheese (for covering the casserole, don't be afraid to use more if you want)

Directions

1. Fry the slices of bacon until crisp and then put them aside (put them in a paper towel if you want to loose some of the fat). If you're using whole cloves, add them now and let them fry for a bit.
2. Cut the onions and pepper (pieces should be approximately 1-2cm by a few mm) and start frying them over low to moderate heat in the pan used for frying the bacon. Add the ground cloves (if you're using whole cloves they should already be in the pan).
3. Cut the zucchini (pieces should be no more than about 1cm in any dimension) and garlic (very fine, but don't use a garlic press) and add them to the onions and pepper (it could be a good idea to cut the zucchini earlier, sprinkle it with salt and let it sweat for about half an hour). Turn up the heat a bit and continue frying until the onion and pepper is soft (the zucchini should not become mushy).
4. Add the minced meat, bacon, molasses and worcester sauce and continue frying over moderate heat. In the mean time, cut the tomato (small pieces) and bacon. Adjust seasoning if desired (you should be able to taste the worcester sauce, and the mixture should be only slightly sweet).
5. Once the minced meat is a greyish brown, add the tomato and bread (in small pieces). Prepare a greased oven-proof dish, preheat the oven to 175C and let the mixture simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated (the mixture should still be moist).
6. Pour/spoon all of the mixture into the oven-proof dish, cover it with cheese and bake it at 175C for about 20 minutes (or until the cheese is a golden brown).