Spring is here and I am enjoying every second! Everything is so fresh and crisp it’s perfection. I have created the perfect meal for any evening out on the patio.These two creations are not complete with out Five Cheese and Riserva Marinara sauce from Bertolli it adds the extra flavor that so many recipes lack.
Lasagna Stuffed Zucchini Boats:
What You Need:
- 4 medium zucchini (2 1/2 lbs), sliced into halves through the length*
- 1 cup (8.6 oz) part-skim ricotta cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish
- 1 1/4 cups (5 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup (2 oz) finely shredded parmesan cheese
- 8 oz 93% lean ground beef or lean ground turkey
- 4 tsp olive oil, divided
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 3/4 cup Bertolli five cheese sauce
- 1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil, plus more for garnish
How To Create:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Using a spoon, scoop centers from zucchini while leaving a 1/4-inch rim to create boats. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl stir together ricotta cheese, egg and 1 1/2 Tbsp of the parsley. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Stir in 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese and the parmesan cheese. Set aside.
- Heat 2 tsp of the olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Crumble beef into pan, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally and breaking up beef when stirring, until browned (there shouldn’t be any excess fat but if you happened to use a fattier beef then just drain excess rendered fat). Stir in marinara sauce and 1 Tbsp of the basil, remove from heat.
- To assemble boats, brush both sides of of zucchini lightly with remaining 2 tsp olive oil and place in two baking pans (I used a 13 by 9 and a 9 by 9). Add meat mixture. Divide cheese mixture among zucchini spooning about 2 1/2 Tbsp into each, then spread cheese mixture into and even layer. Divide sauce among zucchini adding a few heaping spoonfuls to each. Cover baking dishes with foil and place in oven side by side and bake in preheated oven 30 minutes. Remove from oven, sprinkle tops with remaining 3/4 cup mozzarella, return to oven and bake until cheese has melted and zucchini is tender, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle tops with with fresh basil and parsley and serve warm.
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Roasted Cauliflower
What You Need:
- 1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 4 garlic cloves, unpeeled
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ cup grated Parmesan
How To Create:
Preheat oven to 425°. Toss cauliflower florets on a large rimmed baking sheet with onion, thyme, garlic, and oil; season with salt and pepper. Roast, tossing occasionally, until almost tender, 35-40 minutes. Sprinkle with Parmesan, toss to combine, and roast until cauliflower is tender, 10–12 minutes longer. Serve Bertolli Riserva for dipping it completes it perfectly !
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I used these Bertolli sauces they were a perfect fit !
Bertolli sauce can gives my creations a authentic well-rounded Tuscan taste without a sacrificing your resources time and tons of money.
Long live delicious Tuscan taste.
Love these creations? If so visit the Bertolli Facbook page and be inspired !!
Thanks so much for coming by I hope you enjoy this was the best creation I have made in a while and it went so well together !!
I don’t eat grains and my family doesn’t eat them often either since I make so many dishes without them. This would be a great thing for us to try in the summer when our garden yields so much zucchini we don’t know what to do with it all!
This sounds delicious and healthy. I’m “on board”. I’ll give them a try this week.
This looks so divine. As soon as I saw the cheese it sold me! Great recipe, one that many would love!!
That sounds really good. Cauliflower is definitely a favorite in our family. YUM.
Awesome! Need to try them right away!
Both look super easy! I will have to try. It has been awhile since I have had zucchini boats! -Wendie
These vegetable are my favourite. You make me craving for something, they look heavenly delicious. Would love to put a lot of cheese -:)
What a great recipe. We are always looking for different ways to prepare cauliflower.
Meatless meals are the best. Love using fresh veggies.
These look like great recipes to try. My hubby would LOVE both of these!
Yum!! These look absolutely delicious!!
This looks delicious. I’m working toward adapting a low carb lifestyle so this is perfect to have in my arsenal!
Oh my gosh this looks incredible. I think I need to make it tonight!
xo
Lee Anne
http://lifebylee.com/
yum! Those look so delicious!
yummy. I am particularly fond of the roasted cauliflower. That is one vegetable my kids can’t get enough of!
I’m gluten free, so these sound fantastic. Thank you for sharing!
Those stuffed zucchini looks so delicious and it’s something I know my husband would eat!
xo, Jackie
stylemydreams.com
I use zucchini and cauliflower for substitutes often but man did this post just change my life. This food looks so amazing. I am so ready for lunch. I love italian food but darn those carbs lol
I love zucchini boats! I can’t stand cauliflower though.
This looks DELICIOUS!!!
These are two things I don’t normally enjoy but this looks so good!
Do you think the zucchini dish would work with cucumber? I’m not a fan of zucchini.
Love how you show detailed photos for each step – that is so helpful! And this looks really yummy…and healthy! I think I’ll try this!
Karen | GlamKaren.com
I’m so happy you use Bertolli! If I’m not using homemade gravy it’s my go to! Their vodka sauce is amazing as well!
I have never had stuffed zucchini! I think I am going to have to try this soon! I looks amazing!
The Lasagna Stuffed Zucchini Boats look delicious. I am going to have to make this some time. Pinning 🙂
I made roasted cauliflower for the first time a couple months ago – we all loved it! I don’t know why I never thought of it before, we love roasted veggies! The stuffed zucchini looks awesome as well!
I have had some of these before. They are so delicious.
Yummy!! Will definately have to try 🙂 Thanks for the great share and the awesome pictures!!
I cant wait to make thise zuccini boats!
Now this my vegetarian would love. The other kids aren’t big fans of cauliflower but don’t mind zucchini. I’m going to share this with her. I’m sure she’ll appreciate it.
Yum I’ve been looking for a way to incorporate more veggies in my meals and this is perfect because I love lasagna. My sister had roasted cauliflower once and told me it was delicious so I would definitely like to try this recipe . Saving for later! 🙂
I love stuffed zucchini. There are so many different varieties of ways to stuff them and they’re all good.
oh my gosh, these look so amazing. Perfect for people with issues over gluten and so healthy.
These look fantastic! We cant stand using eggplant, so replacing that with zuchinni for lasagna is a great idea!
My family has really been trying to make a lifestyle change to eat more healthy, but we’ve been struggling to find things we look forward to eating. We’ve discussed “meatless mondays”, but had no clue what we would eat instead that would as tasty as it was healthy. I think this meal is the perfect solution for us! I’m definitely going to suggest it in the coming weeks!
I was looking for Lasagna recipe since last few weeks. Thanks for sharing the recipe. Can’t wait to try it!
I’ve never tried either of these! I can’t deny something covered in cheese like that. Yummy and healthy!
What a delicious and healthy alternative to traditional lasagna. I can’t wait to make these. The cauliflower also sounds delicious. Great meal!
Yummy, Whens dinner????
I can’t wait to try the Bertolli five cheese sauce and pair it with cauliflower. It sounds like a delicious recipe and I might add some broccoli.
Both of these sound delicious! Definitely going to try the stuffed zucchini.
Southern Soul
I love me some spring-time weather and zucchini boats! Anytime 😉
What a great way to use cauliflower and zucchini. This looks like a recipe that my whole family will like.
love zucchini boats! another great way to eat them. roasted cauliflower is my fav!
The zucchini boats sound like the taste great, and would be a nice way to mix up our weekly routine. Plus, I’m gluten free, so that’s a really nice way to have an Italian meal without having pasta. Great idea 🙂
These look amazing! I’m drooling.
Omg this looks so yummy!!!!! Love it when healthy things look good! So giving this a try!
I think the Zucchini looks amazing. I will have to give that a try.
So much yum in one recipe! Cant wait to try
This is so perfect to get Italian flavor with out the carbs and it looks delicious too!!
Looks so good! I love how simple it is to make, I know my family will love this. I have to give this recipe a try!
I must try this it looks absolutely mouth watering!