Zucchini Boats (Stuffed Zucchini)

Ever have a dinner entree that was the most wonderful ever?  It's this one.  The hubby sang it's praises and I wished I had doubled the recipe to have oodles of leftovers because I'm sure it will taste better tomorrow as the flavors mingle. 

I looked around the net for different stuffed zuchinni inspiration and found this... but had to make it my own and really mix things up a bit.  

 I like to fly by the seat of my pants and use whatever I've got in my ref.   I'm going to give my ingredients used, but there are so many variations, and it's up to your personal preference. .... cheeseburger zucchini boats, plain cheesy zucchini,   Italian sausage (my variation) or whatever (literally) floats your boat.   

Slice 3 zucchini in half as even as possible  

 Scoop out the center with a teaspoon.

 If your zuchini are rolling, you can make a base by running your peeler down the center for stability.

 Place in greased pan.  

 Mix together your filling ingredients.  Literally, whatever you have on hand...  

Since I already had about a pound cooked ground sausage in my ref I decided to use that as my starter for my filling. 

My filling contained: 

1 pound sausage, cooked and drained well

3 sun dried tomatoes, chopped up very fine 

sprinkling of chopped olives 

chopped fresh basil 

about a teaspoon of pesto

2 ounces of cream cheese

3 Tbsp tomato sauce
sea salt grinder
pepper grinder

1/2 cup to 1 cup of cheese for topping (I used muenster since it's our fave)

I really think the basil and the sun dried tomatoes make this dish SING with flavor. 

A quick word about tomato sauce vs. spaghetti sauce. Most spaghetti sauces have a TON of sugar added.  I've found that tomato sauce is much easier on the carbs.  

Mix your filling ingredients in a large glass bowl and put in microwave till cream cheese is soft enough to mix it together well. 

Scoop meat mixture into zucchini.  

Top with cheese.   

Bake at 375 for 30-35 minutes or until zucchini is fork tender.   

 This really was a hit.  My hubby said I hit it out of the ballpark and that really makes me happy.  

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Have a Lovely Day!!!

The Country Cook

Chic on a Shoestring Decorating