Stuffed Zucchini

Do you need a nutritious dinner that everyone in your orbit will enjoy?  I think we all do!  Italian-American-style Stuffed Zucchini is easy and almost magical in its ability to appeal to all ages and tastes.  Kids love it!  You can call them “boats” or whatever else would appeal to your kids.  And if you have a strict no-veggie eater on hand, you’ll be happy to hear that they can eat the filling out of the zucchini shell, but still get plenty of veggies.  (You don’t have to tell them that, though. )  And any adult who even halfway likes Italian food is sure to love it.

This delightful family favorite comes together quickly and packs plenty of nutrition.  Stuffed Zucchini will remind you of a meaty vegetable lasagna, but it requires only a tiny fraction of the effort to produce.  Plus, it’s delicious, and  a complete meal all by itself.  I usually just add garlic bread and call it good.

Stuffed Zucchini is also a terrific make-ahead dish.  Simply make the filling, stuff the zucchini, then cover and refrigerate for as much as 3 or 4 days.  You can bake it straight from the fridge if you add a few extra minutes to the cook time.   Stuffed Zucchini is one of my go-to dishes to take to new moms.  I’ve not tried freezing it unbaked, but I imagine it would work just fine.

I usually use ground beef in the filling, but we enjoy Stuffed Zucchini with ground Italian sausage if I have some on hand.  Actually, you can make a vegetarian dish by replacing the meat with 8 oz. of minced fresh mushrooms and more breadcrumbs to soak up the extra liquid from the mushrooms.   

Inexplicably, I have one friend who doesn’t like zucchini.  She’s a grownup.  Kim, if you’re reading this, I guess you can substitute yellow squash.  Try to get the straight kind, though?

Buon appetito!

Print Recipe

5 from 2 votes

Stuffed Zucchini

Ingredients

• 1 lb. ground beef, ground Italian sausage, or a combination
• 4 medium or 3 large zucchini, about 2 lbs total
• 1 22 oz. jar marinara sauce
• 1 t. Italian seasoning
• ½ t. onion powder
• ½ t. red pepper flakes
• ¼ t. garlic powder
• ½ cup grated parmesan
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs, divided
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella, divided
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 t. olive oil

Instructions

• Brown the ground beef or sausage, drain. Preheat the oven to 350°.
• While the meat is browning, slice the zucchini in half lengthwise. Scoop out the flesh leaving a ¼-inch shell. Roughly chop the zucchini flesh. and add to the drained ground beef.
• To make the filling, combine the meat and chopped zucchini, the marinara, Italian seasoning, onion powder, pepper flakes, garlic powder, parmesan, ¾ cups of panko, and one cup of mozzarella. Salt and pepper to taste.
• Arrange the zucchini shells in a casserole dish in a single layer. Lightly season the empty shells with salt and pepper. Fill the shells generously with the meat mixture. Cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 45 minutes or until you can pierce a zucchini shell easily with a fork.
• When the zucchini is tender, remove the foil. Sprinkle the remaining cup of mozzarella over the stuffed zucchini. Toss the remaining panko crumbs with a teaspoon of olive oil and sprinkle evenly over the zucchini. Return to the oven long enough to melt the cheese and brown the bread crumbs, about 10 minutes. Let the zucchini rest for 5 minutes before serving.