Stuffed Zucchini
Stuffed zucchini can be a quick and easy weeknight meal with a little prep time.
I had a lot of zucchini from the farmer's market and I was tired of sautéing it. I had some beef that needed some pizzazz.
Beyond that, I didn’t have any ideas other than stuffing that zucchini.
When I made my weekly menu and planned stuffed zucchini, I assumed I would figure out between Sunday and Thursday how I wanted to go about this.
I was wrong. So I grabbed what I had hanging around. I knew I didn’t want a tomato sauce, but more of a cream cheese sauce and I had a tub of mascarpone patiently waiting for something.
This seems like a lot of work, but it was prepped in 15 minutes, and cooked for 30 minutes. You can start the beef, onions, and peppers the same time you begin work on the zucchini.
Once you have finished scooping out the middle of the zucchini, add it to the beef. It will continue to cook in the oven so it doesn’t have to be completely done before stuffing. It does need a at least 5 minutes or so in the pan to help reduce the water content.
Stuffed Zucchini
Ingredients
- 4 large zucchini, sliced lengthwise and middle scooped out and reserved.
- ¾ lb lean ground beef
- ½ cup chopped red/yellow/green peppers in any combination
- ½ cup onion, diced
- ⅓ cup of water
- 1 Tablespoon taco seasoning
- ½ cup shredded cheddar
- ½ cup of mascarpone cheese, cream cheese is excellent substitute
- ¼ cup of parsley, chopped
- ½ cup of mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1 green onion, sliced thin
Instructions
- Brown beef, peppers, onions and the middle part of the zucchini that was scooped out. Leave “boats” on a sprayed sheet pan.
- Add taco seasoning and water. Stir and simmer a few minutes until seasoning is equally distributed.
- In a large bowl, add beef, cheddar, mascarpone, parsley. Mix well.
- Spoon mixture into each zucchini boat.
- Bake 400* for 30 minutes. If zucchini is not done, return to oven and check after 10 more minutes.
- Remove, sprinkle mozzarella cheese and return to oven. Turn heat off. Cheese will melt in 3-5 minutes. Top with green onions and serve.
Nutrition Information:
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 426Saturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 102mgSodium: 311mgCarbohydrates: 19gFiber: 5gSugar: 9gProtein: 32g
According to my fitness ap. The calories per serving which I made 2 halves with all the ingredients in them was 427. Not too bad.
When I first saw the picture it reminded of a Philly cheesesteak sub! I'm going to try it out that way. Green peppers, onions, and provolone!
I made a version of this with cream cheese . Was wondering how many carbs , calories, protein is in this?? I am on a low carb way of eating..
What is the serving size and nutrition facts?
Thank you so much for this recipe! It has become a favorite of my whole family, from my 72 yr old father to my 4 yr old nephew. I play with the seasonings and cheeses, and we especially like a spicy version with smoked paprika, chipotle chili powder, and garlic, topped with cheddar. The recipe is infinitely variable, depending on what ground meat and veggies are in my refrigerator.
Thank you so much for letting me know! I'm so glad you could please your family with one of my recipes 🙂
just made it and everyone loved it ((: seriously delicious and quick .. side of French bread ! Awesome
Yay! I'm glad everyone liked it 🙂
I tried this recipe last night. My husband gave me the eye rolls because he doesn't like zucchini. But after he had a few bites, he said that it tasted way better than what he was expecting. I made a few adjustments, but overall I am so happy I found your recipe! Thank you so much!
Awesome! Thanks for the feedback 🙂
How many people should this serve? I really need to know, as I'm preparing for a dinner party. Thank you!!
With 4 zucchini, it should serve 4 people.
So good! Even the kids loved this one....It is so hard to find meals for dinner to make for my family without carbs. I made a slight change as I used greek yogurt instead of the mascarpone cheese. It was so good...thank you for sharing this recipe.
Also, 4 zucchini's fed the 6 of us, plus half a zucchini left over, the kids couldn't eat more then half of a zucchini! 🙂
Made these for dinner tonight.....
Big hit
Used ground turkey and added a can of diced tomatoes and did cream cheese instead of the mascarpone.
Will be making them again
T H E B E S T stuffed vegetable E V E R !
i enjoyed it so much. it is really yummy!
thank you for sharing 🙂