Zucchini Monte Cristo #2

I had an idea to make stuffed zucchini, but not your traditional recipe that scoops out the center and adds

 back in a bread stuffing. Mine would be stuffed with a Monte Cristo filling of ham and Swiss cheese.

I made these for my family to critique on Easter.

What was the concensus?

They all agreed that they were good but (and there's the but)  there wasn't much zucchini flavor.

Back to the drawing board.
Yesterday I got the chance to make them again. Any special reason? Not really, it is something I made in my mind and now I want to translate them to paper.

This time, instead of small zucchini, I bought 2 very large zucchini and halved them crosswise and sliced them lengthwise on the wide setting of my V-slicer (about  3/8"), throwing the first and last one to the groundhog.

I also had the Deli guy slice the Swiss and ham thicker. Instead of crumb coating, I am using my no-fail francaise batter (found here). Using this batter instead of crumbs will allow the flavors to come through, it is cleaner and soaks up less oil. When you have a slippery surface (such as most vegetables) this batter sticks to them without dredging in flour first. Enough about the batter, on to the sauce.

I first saw this homemade mustard in Mario's Babbo cookbook and just had to make it. It is as tasty as it is unique, which inspired me to usw it in a grownup honey-mustard sauce. This sauce is the perfect compliment to this Monte Cristo.

Honey-Porcini Mustard Sauce
Adapted from The Babbo Cookbook

Mustard:
* 1/2 small red onion, minced
* 1 cup balsamic vinegar
* 2 ounces dried porcini mushrooms
* 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
* 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Sauce:
* 1/2 cup porcini mustard
* 1 cup heavy cream/light cream or almond milk
* 3 tablespoons honey
* Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Mustard: combine onion, vinegar and mushrooms in a small saucepan and simmer till halved.
2. Puree in processor and add mustard and oil to emulsify.
3. Sauce: combine 1/2 cup mustard with rest of ingredients and refrigerate till ready to serve.

This version was a winner. Two slices of zucchini with a slice of ham and a slice of Swiss cheese between, dipped into the batter, then shallow fried in olive oil. Serve hot while the cheese oozes out when you cut into them.....yum!!!

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