Kidney Bean & Kielbasa Stuffed Zucchini Boats
These stuffed zucchini boats are overflowing with savory meat, kidney beans, and marinara sauce. Topped with mozzarella cheese and baked to tender perfection, eating vegetables has never been so delectable. Whether you make them for a quiet night in or for feeding a hungry crowd, these stuffed zucchini boats will please any tastebud they touch. Served with a steamy piece of garlic bread or over a bed of pasta, this meal will make weeknights a delicious breeze.
Equipment
- Cutting Board
- Medium sized pot
- 9x13 casserole dish
- Meat masher
- Chef's knife
- Mixing spoon
- Grapefruit spoon or other similar carving tool
Ingredients
For The Filling
- 1 lb Sweet ground Italian sausage
- 12 oz Beef Polska Kielbasa
- 48 oz Marinara sauce Two 24oz jars
- 31 oz Dark red kidney beans Two 15.5oz cans
- 28 oz San Marzano Style Italian tomatoes whole peeled
- 1/4 tsp Ground pepper
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
Other Ingredients:
- 8 oz Shredded Mozzarella cheese
- 4 Medium-sized zucchini, halved About 6" long
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients and set the oven to 350 degrees. Place sweet ground Italian sausage in the pot, and begin to cook on medium heat.
- As sausage begins to brown, add the Italian seasoning and pepper; stir to combine.
- Chop the kielbasa. Cut into round slices, and then cut each slice into four triangles. Add to the pot with sausage, and stir to combine. Allow to simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until sausage is cooked through.
- While the meat is simmering, begin prepping zucchinis. Cut ends off of each zucchini, and slice each one into two halves.
- Hollow out each half. Using a grapefruit spoon (or some other efficient tool), carefully scoop out the middle, seeded flesh of each zucchini half. You want to hollow them out enough to hold the filling, but not so much that there's barely any zucchini left. The goal is to scoop out a majority of the middle, while leaving a retaining wall and a few inches of zucchini below. Set zucchini aside.
- Dump both cans of kidney beans into a colander, and rinse until there are no more bubbles. Add to the filling mixture; stir.
- Open the can of San Marzano Style Italian tomatoes, and pluck each one out. You will not need the extra sauce in the can. Place tomatoes on the cutting board, and loosely chop them to make smaller pieces. Add to the filling mixture; stir.
- Pour both jars of marinara sauce into the mixture and thoroughly mix to combine. Allow mixture to simmer for 5-10 minutes, allowing the flavors to blend. Ensure all meat is cooked thoroughly.
- Arrange zucchini halves in a greased casserole dish. Using a large spoon or ladle, generously fill each zucchini half with the mixture.
- Top with mozzarella cheese. Bake uncovered for 35-45 minutes, or until bubbles form and zucchinis are tender when poked with a fork. Serve with garlic bread or over your favorite pasta.
Notes
The ingredients for the filling will make enough to fill 16 boats (or 8 zucchinis, halved). However, 8 boats is enough to feed a small crowd, and is what I tailored this recipe to. So, you have three options: 1. Half the filling ingredients, 2. double the amount of zucchini, or my personal favorite, 3. use half the filling and freeze the other half for an easy meal in the future. This way, all you'll have to do in the future is hollow out some fresh zucchini, fill, and bake!