Southwest Zucchini Boats
INGREDIENTS
FOR THE ZUCCHINI BOATS
- 5 large Zucchini, washed, dried, cut in half and cored
- Salt & Fresh Ground Black Pepper
- Olive Oil (we use Prairie Oils & Vinegars)
- ¾ cup Parmesan Cheese
FOR THE STUFFING
- 1 lb Ground Meat – in this recipe we used Ground Chicken &
Ground Italian Sausage from Unger Meats (choose any meat
you prefer. Ground Beef, Pork, Chicken, Sausage, Turkey, etc.) - 1 small Onion, diced
- 1 clove minced Garlic
- 1 medium Tomato, diced
- 1 tsp Black Pepper
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- ½ tsp Red Pepper Flakes
- 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
- ½ tsp Smoked Paprika
- ½ tsp Salt
- Fresh Ground Black Pepper to taste
- ¾ cup Corn Kernels
- ¾ cup Black Beans
- 1 – 14 oz can Stewed Seasoned Tomatoes chunks (with the juices)
- 1 cup Shredded Mexican Cheese (or cheddar or whatever you have)
DIRECTIONS
- Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees
- Cut and core the zucchinis so you are left with a “boat”. Not too much as you still need the boat to be strong and hold the stuffing 🙂
- Place the Zucchinis on a baking dish, drizzle with olive oil, add some salt and pepper. Bake in oven for 15 mins.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, bring 1 tbsp olive oil to medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook until they are tender. Add the ground meat, spices and salt. Cook for a couple minutes.
- Add the black beans, corn, diced tomatoes, canned tomatoes. Mix and simmer on medium-low heat for about 5 mins. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Remove the Zucchini from the oven and sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese.
- Next generously stuff the the Zucchini Boats with the stuffing mixture. Top them with some shredded cheese and return to oven to bake for another 10 mins.
- Remove from the oven and garnish with fresh parsley or cilantro if you wish. Rest for a few minutes before serving.
Hope this FLOATS your BOAT :). ENJOY!