Zucchini Boats - Healthified 'No Pasta' Italian Dinner

Get ready for a fresh and 'healthified' way to enjoy a delicious Italian meal. Still on my 'half your plate should be vegetables' kick, I was looking for a healthy alternative, yet flavourful substitute. Well, I think I found it. Zucchini Boats and Roasted Parmesan Cauliflower - no pasta invited to this dinner.

I found this great recipe through one of my favourite healthy websites skinnytaste.com.  I wanted to create an Italian meal so I adapted the recipe with Italian flavours. Added tomato sauce, oregano, garlic and basil instead of the Mexican ingredients listed below

Italian Stuffed Zucchini Boats 
(adapted from http://www.skinnytaste.com/2013/07/taco-stuffed-zucchini-boats.html)
Ingredients: 

• 4 medium (32 ounces) zucchinis, cut in half lengthwise

• 1 lb ground turkey

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 tsp oregano

• 1 tsp kosher salt, or to taste

• 1 tsp basil

• 1/2 small onion, minced

• 2 tbsp bell pepper, minced

• 8 oz can tomato sauce

• 1/4 cup water

• 1/2 cup reduced fat Mozzarella shredded cheese

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley for topping

Directions: 
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Preheat oven to 400°F. Place 1/4 cup of tomato sauce in the bottom of a large baking dish. Using a small spoon or melon baller, hollow out the center of the zucchini halves, leaving 1/4-inch thick shell on each half. Chop the scooped out flesh of the zucchini in small pieces and set aside 3/4 of a cup to add to the turkey filling. Drop zucchini halves in boiling water and cook 1 minute. Remove from water.
Brown turkey in a large skillet, breaking up while it cooks. When no longer pink add the spices and mix well. Add the onion, bell pepper, reserved zucchini, tomato sauce and water. Stir and cover, simmer on low for about 20 minutes.

Using a spoon, fill the hollowed zucchini boats dividing the taco meat equally, about 1/3 cup in each, pressing firmly. Top each with 1 tablespoon of shredded cheese. Cover with foil and bake 35 minutes until cheese is melted and zucchini is cooked through. Top with scallions and serve with salsa on the side.

Next, I decided to roast some cauliflower, adding more veggies to our dinner again! I'm on a mission.



Here's what I did,

Roasted Parmesan Cauliflower

Ingredients:

• 1 head of cauliflower
• 2 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the oil and spices. Chop the cauliflower into florets and add to the bowl. Place your coated cauliflower on a sheet pan and spread evenly in one layer. Bake for about 30 minutes.  Take the cauliflower out of the oven, flip the pieces over and sprinkle the Parmesan cheese on top. Bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until the cheese has melted.


Here you have them. They are soooooo good, just like eating candy... well, veggie candy!

Here are the Zuchinni boats out of the oven. Made the house smell so good!

Here's the best thing, 3/4 of our dinner was vegetables- no pasta needed- it was so delicious and flavourful and my family absolutely loved it. It's a new 5 Star family favourite and so good for you!