In recipe, meatballs and marinara sauce complement mild, tender zucchini, and melted cheese on top creates a rich, satisfying, and well-balanced dish.
Ingredients
4 medium (approximately 8 inch) zucchini
1 ½ tablespoon olive oil, divided
½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 ½ teaspoon salt, divided
½ teaspoon black pepper, divided
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
¾ cup minced yellow onion
¼ cup finely-chopped parsley
3 garlic cloves, minced
¼ cup chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1 egg
2 cups marinara sauce
2 cups shredded mozzarella
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 F (350 F convection).
Cut off both ends of each zucchini and slice them in half lengthwise.
Remove the cores of each zucchini and brush the insides with 1 tablespoon olive oil.
Sprinkle the zucchini with Italian seasoning, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper, and put it in a pan greased with the remaining oil.
Combine the ground meats with the onion, parsley, garlic, tomatoes, egg, and remaining salt and pepper.
Form the meat into 32 balls, approximately 1 ½ inch in diameter.
Put 4 meatballs in each zucchini.
Bake the zucchini and meatballs on the middle rack for about 20 minutes or until the meatballs look golden brown on top.
Top each zucchini boat with marinara sauce to cover the meatballs, then finish off with a layer of cheese.
Bake the zucchini boats for 15 minutes until the cheese melts, then serve immediately.
