1. Trim off the top end of the zucchini and slice them lengthwise into half. Scoop out the soft center with a teaspoon. Set aside. Finely chop the removed zucchini pulp. Set aside. Finely dice the onion. Set aside. Finely dice the garlic. Set aside. Unpit the olives and dice them finely. Set aside. Fill a large steel skillet with hot water and boil the zucchini halves for 3 minutes. Drain water and set zucchini in skillet aside.

2. Preheat the oven to 220C/450F. In another skillet, over high heat, heat 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Add the garlic. With 1-2 minutes of stirring in between each ingredient add the onion, followed by the sun dried tomatoes, chopped zucchini pulp, olives and finally the tofu, finely crumbled. Stir frequently for another 2-3 minutes. Add half of the tomato sauce and stir until everything has a nice red color.

3. Transfer the zucchini to a baking dish brushed with 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Stuff zucchini with mediterranean mixture and bake in hot oven for 15 minutes. Fill a large pot with hot water. Add a tablespoon of marjoram and bring to a boil. Add the full wheat penne and cook until al dente, stirring every now and then. Meanwhile, add the other half of the tomato sauce and a cup of water to the mediterranean mixture leftovers. Lower heat to medium high and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in a teaspoon of chili powder while simmering. When done, drain penne, transfer to large pot, add tomato sauce and stir until everything has a nice red color.

4. Put the baked zucchini boats in the center of a large plate. Be careful or you will end up with Titanic zucchini as they are pretty fragile when done. Create a red sea of penne around them and decorate with a fresh leaf of basil.

We had our first sunny and warm day of the year this Wednesday and I decided to make something special to celebrate the event. Stores were all closed but I did have some zucchini lying around that I had purchased five days earlier for reasons unknown except perhaps unconscious clairvoyance. I never had stuffed zucchini before, mind you, which may be why this dish was an almost spiritual revelation for my taste buds. In brief: yum!

Serves 2.