The delicious Italian Style Stuffed Zucchini Boatscould not be better and perfect for those huge zucchini that are in season …

 

Ingredients

3 medium, uniformly-sized zucchini

1. (24 to 26 ounces) container tomato basil marinara divided

1 tablespoon olive oil 1 tablespoon olive

1 pound of lean ground beef or turkey

12 cup diced onion

1 tablespoon minced garlic

12 cup of chopped bell peppers

1/2 cup chopped button mushrooms from brown

1 cup fresh chopped Italian parsley

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon salt

Fresh black pepper ground, to taste

1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper or as desired.

1-1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (I used part-skim)

1/4 cup chopped or shaved Parmesan

2 Tablespoons Italian style panko breadcrumbs

 

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 ° F. Measure 1 cup of marinara sauce, and set aside.

Remove the ends of the zucchini and cut it into half in lengthwise. Utilize the point of the spoon to scrape the fleshy zucchini (see the recipe notes) chop it up and put it aside. The zucchini scooped boats in an 13” by 9 baking dish. add 1 inch of water. Cover with foil and bake in a the oven at a preheated temperature for 20 minutes until they are just slightly tender. Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature.

While you’re at it prepare olive oil in an 11” skillet and place it on MEDIUM heat. In the meantime, add beef or turkey (or beef) onions bell pepper, turkey, as well as garlic, to the pan. Stir to break the ground meat while cooking. Continue cooking and stirring until the meat is cooked thoroughly and vegetables have become soft. Remove the grease to the extent possible and then return the skillet back to the stove.

Mix in the zucchini flesh chopped as well as mushrooms, marinara remaining in the jar (reserve 1 cup to use future use) Parsley, Italian spice, salt freshly ground black pepper as well as the crushed red pepper. Mix well to incorporate. Bring to a boil at which point reduce the heat and allow to simmer on low heat for approximately 15 minutes.

Remove the zucchini that is partially cooked from the baking dish, and then drain the water. Pour 1 cup of marinara in an baking dish, and then place zucchini boats over the sauce.

Divide the filling among each of the boats made from zucchini. If you have more filling, add it to the dish to cover those zucchini vessels. Cover the dish with foil then bake it for about 20 mins up to when zucchini gets soft. Remove the dish from the oven and allow the oven to BROIL.

Remove foil , and then Sprinkle zucchini with cheese, Parmesan along with the bread crumbs from panko. Put dish in oven, keeping an eye on it and cook for few minutes, until cheese melts and bread crumbs have turned golden brown.