COUSA SQUASH RECIPE RECIPES

Steps:

• Soak the rice in warm water for at least 1/2 an hour.
• Drain rice and mix together with ground meat, spices and olive oil.
• Cut the tops off of the cousa and eggplant. Discard.
• Core cousa and eggplant scraping out the insides so 1/4 inch is left all around. (Insides of cousa can be saved for making cousa mutabbal. See end of recipe).
• Carefully cut tops of off green peppers so they can be replaced after stuffing.
• Clean insides of green peppers.
• Stuff vegetables with rice mixture leaving some room for the rice to expand when cooked.
• Fill large pot with vegetables.
• Cut tomatoes to fill blender.
• Add 2/3 blender with water.
• Add tomato paste and salt.
• Mix in blender until smooth.
• Pour tomato sauce over vegetables.
• Add more water if necessary to cover vegatables.
• Cook, uncovered, at a simmer for one and a half hours or until vegetables are soft and rice is done. As long as the sauce is there, you can cook slowly for a longer period for a tastier dish.
• Occasionally cover with additional water to keep sauce from drying out.
• Add crushed garlic and mint to pot for a few minutes.
• Serve stuffed vegetables on a tray.
• Put sauce in a serving bowl to be added if desired.
• Note: Do not put a lid on the vegetables until they are completely cool or they may burst open.
• Cousa Mutabbal, a salad served like hummus, can be made by simmering the contents of the cousa in a small saucepan until cooked. Add a little tahini, yogurt, salt and pepper. Serve with olive oil and crushed dried mint on top. Eat with pita bread.
• Fettat Cousa, a dish served in a 9x13 pan, can be served alongside as well, by tearing up small pieces of bread, generally pita, covered by the tomato sauce from the cousa mashi. Then cover with a sauce of yogurt, garlic, and salt. Top with pinenuts fried in olive oil (along with the oil).

Steps:

• To hollow out the kousa, trim off the top and use a zucchini core to slowly remove the inside of the squash. Be careful not to poke through the bottom or the sides. Once the squash is hallowed out, set aside.
• In a medium bowl, combine beef, rinsed uncooked rice, salt, and pepper. Add half of the garlic (3 grated cloves) and half of the mint (1 tablespoon) to the meat mixture and combine.
• Before you start stuffing the squash, place the tomato juice or tomato paste/water mixture in a large pot, and heat on medium high until boiling.
• While the tomato juice is heating up, begin stuffing the kousa. Be careful to leave about 1 1/2 inch at the top which allows room for them to expand. If you have leftover meat mixture, simply roll them into little meatballs, and add to the tomato broth.
• When the tomato juice has come to a boil, add the remaining mint (1 tablespoon) and garlic (3 grated cloves) as well as the lemon juice. 
• If you used tomato paste/water, add salt and pepper to the broth to taste.
• Gently add in the stuffed kousa. Bring to a boil then turn to low and simmer for 35 minutes. The meatballs are the perfect way to see if the rice is fully cooked.
• Serve in a bowl with plain yogurt on the side.