Kousa

Kousa- Tita’s famous Syrian Stuffed Squash Recipe

Ingredients:

• Small Eggplants
• Small Green Squash
• Small Bell Peppers
• Small Potatoes 
• Ground Beef
• 5 Tablespoons of Tomato Paste
• 3 Tomatoes
• White Rice
• ½ Lemon
• 1 Cup of Tomato Sauce
• ½ Tablespoon of Sugar
• Salt

Instructions:

1. Carve out the insides of the eggplants, squash, bell peppers and potatoes.
2. Mix cooked rice and ground beef.
3. Stuff the eggplants, squash, bell peppers and potatoes with the beef and rice mixture.
4. Place the bell peppers in a large saucepan, followed by the eggplants, then the potatoes, and then the squash. 
5. Pour 5 tablespoons of tomato paste into the saucepan and then place 3 cut tomatoes into the saucepan. 
6. Pour 1 cup of tomato sauce into the saucepan. 
7. Squeeze ½ of a lemon into the saucepan and sprinkle ½ a spoonful of sugar into the saucepan. 
8. Salt the dish to your preference. 
9. Cook the dish on high heat until it begins to boil.
10. After it boils, cook it on low for 30 minutes- make sure to lightly shake the saucepan so the sauce spreads throughout the dish.
11. After 30 minutes, drain the sauce out of the dish because the stuffed vegetables will fall apart from the heat. 
12. When it is ready to be served, pour the sauce back in and enjoy.