Turkey Marinara Stuffed Zucchini
In search for the easiest dinner that also makes for great leftovers?! These Turkey Marinara Stuffed Zucchini are just what you need. When it comes to dinner during the week, I want something to be quick, easy and make for great leftovers for the next day! Zucchini is so versatile whether you put it in pasta, on salads or stuff it like I did here!
By the time dinner rolls around, we all want something that is quick, easy and delicious. Plus, a meal that the kids, husband, boyfriend, friends will love! That’s one reason why I love these Turkey Marinara stuffed zucchini. It’s bound to make everyone happy and feel satisfied after enjoying them. They are balanced with protein, fat and carbs too making this a perfect meal to throw together during the week.
I love using zucchini during the week and it’s one of my go-to veggies to pick up when I’m at the store. Especially right now as zucchini season is in full swing and there are so many ways to use it. If you’re looking to explore how you use zucchini, try the Air Fried Zucchini Fries or Pesto Power Greens Salad from the site.
What you need for Turkey Marinara Stuffed Zucchini:
- Zucchini Squash
- Ground Turkey
- Yellow Onion
- Garlic Clove
- Olive Oil
- Italian Seasoning
- Marinara Sauce
- Sea salt
- Black Pepper
- Garlic powder
- Shredded Mozzarella cheese
Why these are great to meal prep for the week:
- These are great to reheat for leftovers the next day! Or if you don’t want to assemble them, you can prep the marinara ground turkey to have ready so all you need to do is bake them in the oven when you’re ready to eat!
- It’s important to have go-to meals that are balanced and healthy during the week. This is one of them! I bet everyone will love them too.
Best way to store these zucchini boats for meal prep:
Depending on how you plan to prep and store these, you may want a variety of different sizes for storage containers. These are used daily in my kitchen! Having good quality storage containers are great for keeping food fresh longer and easily stored in the fridge during the week. I like using these for a variety of different sizes and these Elllo Products containers for taking on the go with me!
If you love this recipe, you may also enjoy these on One Balanced Life:
- Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Zucchini
- Grilled Chicken Pesto Pasta
- Ground Turkey Sweet Potato One Pan Meal
- One Pot Taco Pasta
- Ground Turkey Burger Bowls
Want more ideas for easy, weeknight dinners? Check out this blog post with a roundup of weeknight dinners!
FAQs
Can I use a different meat?
Yes! I love using ground turkey here but you can also use ground beef or chicken in this recipe. It’s also a great way to switch these up week to week too.
What’s the best way for cutting the zucchini?
You want to start by cutting the zucchini in half! Once you’ve cut the zucchini, you can scrape out the inside of the zucchini using a spoon. Just be careful here as the zucchini can easily break apart. I recommend still keeping a little bit of the zucchini around the edges while leaving enough room to stuff the ground turkey in them. Tip: when you’re picking out zucchini for these boats, you want to find one that isn’t too thin! The thicker the zucchini, the better they are for making into zucchini boats.
What marinara sauce did you use?
I used the Rao’s marinara sauce! I’ll pick up the big jars at Costco to use in a variety of ways. You can use any of your favorite marinara sauce that you have on hand.
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Turkey Marinara Stuffed Zucchini
These Turkey Marinara Stuffed Zucchini make for an easy, delicious dinner that's a perfect way to use the zucchini in season! Made with a few simple ingredients and even better leftovers.
Ingredients
- 3 zucchini squash
- 1 lb. ground turkey
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 cup yellow onion, chopped
- 1 cup marinara sauce
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (+ more depending on how cheesy you want them!)
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1/4 tsp sea salt, pepper (+ more to taste)
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- optional: red pepper flakes, italian seasoning for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Cut zucchini in half and then scrape out the inside of the zucchini, leaving enough room for the ground turkey marinara to be stuffed in them.
- In pan, heat up pan with olive oil.
- Place minced garlic and onion in the pan to saute until brown.
- Place ground turkey in to saute on medium high heat. Add sea salt, garlic, italian seasoning and pepper. Mix to combine.
- Once ground turkey has browned, add in marinara sauce on low heat. Mix.
- Place ground turkey mixture to fill each zucchini boat.
- Place in the oven to bake for 22 minutes.
- Once they have baked for 22 minutes, top with shredded mozzarella cheese and place back in the oven for 2-3 minutes until cheese has melted.
- Top with red pepper flakes and green onion. Enjoy!
These were delicious! I will use this recipe for stuffed peppers, too. I did add half an onion chopped to the meat right before it finished sautéing. The rest of the recipe I followed exactly, including the Rao’s Marinara Sauce. Easy, quick, and delicious!
Thanks Sally! So glad you enjoyed this recipe!