I like these stuffed zucchini boats with three cheeses, roasted purple peppers, and basil. They’re simple to make, style unimaginable, and completely tacky!
This stuffed zucchini recipe got here from the summer season we determined to develop zucchini in our backyard. We have been inundated with them! We would have liked plenty of methods to make use of zucchini, and these zucchini boats made it to the highest of our favorites checklist. They’re simple, fast, and style wonderful.
The ingredient checklist for this recipe is impressed by our tremendous in style veggie lasagna, which is made with zucchini, cheese, and a sauce made with tomatoes and roasted purple peppers.
Key Substances
- Zucchini: For this recipe, I search for medium, agency zucchini. You’ll minimize them in half after which scoop out a number of the center, so that you need them massive sufficient to suit the cheese stuffing. Yellow summer season squash can be glorious.
- Roasted Purple Pepper: I like the candy taste of roasted purple peppers and sometimes maintain a jar of them within the fridge. If you want to roast your personal, take a look at our roasted red pepper hummus recipe, which reveals how one can roast bell peppers.
- Cheese: I take advantage of three cheeses on this recipe. Ricotta makes the filling creamy, parmesan provides a pointy, tacky taste, and mozzarella melts and turns golden brown. Cottage cheese is a superb substitute for the ricotta. If you’re making this vegetarian, use a vegetarian-friendly parmesan cheese or substitute it with one other sharp cheese like white cheddar.
- Basil: We add basil leaves to the zucchini boats for contemporary summer season taste earlier than serving. Should you solely have dried basil, combine 1 teaspoon into the ricotta filling as an alternative.
Tips on how to Make Cheese Stuffed Zucchini Boats
The prep time for this recipe is low. All you might want to do is slice the zucchini in half lengthwise. Then use a spoon to scoop out a channel down the center. You don’t must take away a lot, simply sufficient to make some room for the ricotta and pepper filling. That is why they’re known as zucchini boats. The channel created by scooping out a number of the zucchini makes them appear to be canoes.
Rub the zucchini halves with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Place them cut-side down on a baking sheet and roast till tender (about quarter-hour). That is the place another stuffed zucchini recipes fall brief. Zucchini has a whole lot of moisture, so roasting them unstuffed first lets some additional moisture cook dinner off.
Then, I stuff the zucchini with a mix of ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, and chopped roasted purple peppers, prime it with mozzarella cheese, and slide it again into the oven to complete cooking. Straightforward, tacky, and so good!
For a heartier variation, add some cooked quinoa, rice, or cooked floor turkey or hen to the stuffing.
Cheese Stuffed Zucchini
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PREP
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COOK
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TOTAL
These cheese stuffed zucchini boats are so tasty. We stuff them with three sorts of cheese and one among our favourite substances: roasted purple peppers. The pepper provides colour and tastes unimaginable when blended with cheese and basil. Take pleasure in these simple zucchini boats as your primary meal (I’d eat two halves) or as a aspect subsequent to a giant salad. Add protein by stirring some cooked floor turkey or sausage into the ricotta and pepper combination. Crumbled tofu, quinoa, rice, or perhaps a handful of canned or cooked chickpeas would additionally make these extra substantial.
Makes 4 small servings or 2 servings as a primary meal
You Will Want
2 medium zucchini
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 roasted purple pepper from a jar of roasted peppers
1/4 cup ricotta cheese (3 ounces)
1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese (1/2 ounce)
1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese (2 ounces)
Handful of torn contemporary basil leaves
Salt and contemporary floor black pepper
Instructions
1Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat, aluminum foil, or parchment paper.
2Minimize the zucchini in half, lengthwise. Use a spoon to scoop a channel down the center of every zucchini half, making boats.
3Rub the zucchini with olive oil and a beneficiant pinch of salt. Place the zucchini halves, minimize aspect down, onto the ready baking sheet. Roast for about 12 minutes or till the zucchini is tender however not mushy.
4In the meantime, chop the roasted purple pepper into small items and add it to a small bowl. Combine within the ricotta and parmesan cheese.
5Flip the zucchini in order that they’re minimize aspect up, and divide the ricotta-pepper combination between the zucchini boats.
6Sprinkle mozzarella on prime, then place the zucchini again into the oven and bake for an additional 8 to 10 minutes, till the cheese melts and the zucchini is mushy. For some browned tacky spots, earlier than taking the baking sheet out of the oven, flip the oven to broil and broil till the cheese bubbles and browns, a further 1 to 2 minutes.
7Serve with basil, a light-weight sprinkle of salt, and contemporary floor black pepper scattered on prime.
Adam and Joanne’s Suggestions
- Vegetarian ideas: Relying on the model, parmesan cheese will not be vegetarian-friendly. Substitute with a pointy white cheddar, or parmesan-style cheese that advertises they don’t use animal rennet to make the cheese.
- Dried basil: Stir 1 teaspoon of dried basil within the ricotta cheese combination.
- The vitamin information supplied under are estimates.
Vitamin Per Serving
Serving Dimension
1 zucchini half
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Energy
120
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Complete Fats
9.4g
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Saturated Fats
4.1g
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Ldl cholesterol
20.8mg
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Sodium
289.9mg
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Carbohydrate
2.8g
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Dietary Fiber
0.7g
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Complete Sugars
1.5g
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Protein
6.2g