Removing prop shaft, propeller and filling in hole

[philipmclaren1]

I have a Heavenly Twins Cat. At the moment it has two Yanmar 1gm engines. I want to remove these and put in an outboard well in the cockpit.
I also want to have the option of putting the twin diesels back in at a later date if I want to.
What is my best option for doing this?
Should I 1. remove the cutlass bearing and fill the hole in and glass both sides? Or should I 2. leave it in and just glass over on the out side?
The second option would seem the best option to me as it would be easy to drill out a hole to the cutlass bearing.
But I’m not sure on the strength and safety of this option?
Has any one else done option 2.
All advice would be appreciated.