Delicious Italian-Sausage Stuffed Zucchini Boats

These Italian-Sausage Stuffed Zucchini Boats are a light and low-carb, high-protein comfort food recipe made with simple, real-food ingredients. Featuring a savory meat and veggies mixture with mozzarella cheese, they bake in the oven for an easy weeknight meal full of flavor and nutrients.

Ingredients To Make Stuffed Zucchini

Here’s what you need to make this stuffed zucchini recipe today:

• zucchini – you’ll need 4 medium zucchini (green summer squash) of uniform size
• ground Italian sausage – may sub ground pork or ground chicken
• ground meat of choice – use ground beef, chicken, pork, or turkey
• onion – use a yellow or white onion
• garlic
• canned diced tomatoes
• fresh spinach
• dried Italian seasoning 
• fine salt and black pepper
• shredded mozzarella cheese
• fresh basil – optional for garnish

For the complete directions and ingredient amounts, scroll down to the recipe card below. All of our recipes include the nutrition information, listing kcals, protein, carbohydrates, cholesterol, fiber, sugar, sodium, total fat, and more per serving.

Ingredient Spotlight: Zucchini

Every spring and summer, we seem to end up with lots and lots of summer squash and fresh zucchini, but we aren’t complaining! We put it to good use with all our healthy zucchini recipes. Luckily, it’s extremely versatile and works well in a wide variety of recipes like our Zucchini Fritters, Caprese Zucchini Salad, Easy Zucchini Lasagna, and these Stuffed Zucchini Boats are one of our favorite new recipes. 

Not only is this fruit (yes, it’s a fruit!) super versatile, but zucchini has a wide variety of health benefits, too! For example, zucchini:

• Is an excellent source of vitamin A, vitamin C, and vitamin K.
• Is rich in potassium, magnesium, and folate. 
• Contains both soluble and insoluble fiber to support healthy digestion.

Tips from Dietitian Jess

How To Get Your Zucchini Boats Just Right

Dietitian Jess developed this recipe and has these tips to share:

• Feel free to make this recipe with yellow squash or hollowed-out bell peppers if preferred. 
• Save the scooped-out zucchini flesh, and incorporate it into the meat mixture for more bulk. 
• When adding additional vegetables in with the meat, allow them to cook in the skillet long enough for any excess water to evaporate. This prevents the recipe from becoming soggy. 
• Substitute the canned diced tomatoes with tomato sauce or marinara sauce if preferred. 
• Adjust the flavor to suit your preferences. For instance, additions such as oregano, red pepper flakes, and breadcrumbs are all delish.

Make It Dairy-Free

Substitute the mozzarella with your favorite plant-based mozzarella, or add a sprinkle of nutritional yeast to make these zucchini boats dairy-free.

How To Store And Reheat

Store leftover zucchini boats in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Any longer than this, and the zucchini halves will become too mushy. 

For a longer-lasting option, freeze leftovers in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw the zucchini in the fridge overnight. 

When you’re ready to eat, reheat leftovers in the oven just until warmed through. You can also warm individual portions in the microwave, but the zucchini is more likely to become slightly soggy this way.

What to Serve with Stuffed Zucchini Boats

This Stuffed Zucchini Boats recipe can easily serve as a complete meal on its own. Or, pair them with a side salad and a side of crusty bread, cooked rice, or quinoa if you want a little more bulk.

More Recipes To Try

Copycat Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana (In The Crockpot)

Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

Healthy Sloppy Joes (Easy Stovetop Recipe)

Harvest Italian Soup with Sausage (Easy Stovetop Recipe)

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Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 3 reviews

Stuffed Zucchini Boats Recipe

A delicious way to enjoy a summer veggie, these stuffed zucchini boats are nutritious and delicious. Stuffed with a combination of ground protein, veggies, seasonings, and cheese, this dinner is low carb yet full of flavor.

Prep: 10 mins.Cook: 25 mins.Total: 35 minutes

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Servings: 4 servings 1x

1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 4 medium zucchini, uniform size
• ½ lb. ground Italian sausage (may use pork or chicken)
• ½ lb. ground meat of choice (beef, chicken, pork or turkey)
• ½ small onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (14 oz.) canned diced tomatoes,  drained
• 2 handfuls spinach, roughly chopped
• ½ teaspoon dried Italian seasoning 
• ½ teaspoon fine salt
• ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• ¼ cup fresh basil, thinly sliced (optional)

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375℉ degrees. Wash and halve the zucchini lengthwise. With a spoon, scoop the insides out, about ½-inch deep (depending on size) leaving ¼ inch around the edge. 
2. Chop the scooped-out zucchini flesh and reserve for step 4.
3. Place the zucchini halves on a baking sheet, and mist both sides with cooking spray. Position the halves cut side up and bake for 6 minutes. When the baking time is up, remove from the oven and set aside.
4. While the zucchini is baking, prepare the sausage filling. Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, mist with cooking spray and add the ground sausage, ground beef (or other ground meat), the reserved chopped zucchini, onion, and garlic.
5. Break up the ground meat using a spatula and cook for 8-10 minutes or until the meat is cooked through and the onions have softened. 
6. Add the drained tomatoes, spinach, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Stir and cook 3-4 minutes or until the spinach is wilted, stirring occasionally. 
7. Stir 1 cup mozzarella cheese into the filling mixture.
8. Next, stuff the partially-baked zucchini with the filling mixture.
9. Sprinkle the remaining ½ cup cheese over the filling.
10. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the zucchini is tender and the cheese is melted.
11. If desired, top with fresh basil just before serving.

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Notes

May use 1 lb of ground Italian sausage or 1 lb of any ground meat in place of the 1/2 lb Italian sausage + 1/2 lb ground meat

Nutrition Information

• Serving Size: 2 stuffed zucchini halves
• Calories: 420
• Fat: 28 g
• (Sat Fat: 13 g)
• Sodium: 880 mg
• Carbohydrate: 12 g
• (Fiber: 2 g
• Sugar: 7 g)
• Protein: 30 g
• Cholesterol: 101 mg

Dietary

Egg-FreeGluten-freeGrain-FreeNut-free

© The Real Food Dietitians

Recipe By: Jessica Beacom

The photos in this blog post were taken by Rachel Cook of Half Acre House.

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