Stuffed marrows

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan160°C/gas 4. Put the rice into a saucepan and add twice the volume of water (700ml). Bring to the boil, then turn down the temperature, cover with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes until the rice has absorbed the water and is tender. Turn off the heat and leave covered.
2. Meanwhile, cut the marrows in half lengthways. Using a spoon, scoop out the seeds and most of the flesh from the centre of the marrows and discard. Chop the onion, pepper, mushrooms, tomatoes and celery into small pieces.
3. Heat the oil in a pan, add the onion, pepper and celery and cook gently until really soft, about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and mushrooms and cook for another 5-10 minutes until all of the vegetables are softened. Carefully add the vegetables to the cooked rice and mix together.
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4. Grate the apple, discarding the core in the middle, and add to the vegetable and rice mixture. Add a pinch of paprika, season and combine everything together.
5. Spoon the rice and vegetables into the marrow halves, then put onto a baking tray. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour 20 minutes, removing the foil for the last 15 minutes. Using oven gloves, take the marrows out of the oven to see if they are cooked. You may need to put them back in the oven for another 10 minutes until tender.