Zucchini Boats with Ground Beef

This is a super flavorful, easy meal that you can make with local zucchini from your garden or a farm stand! The kids will love it and you now have one more way to use the zucchini everyone will soon be offering up! 😊

Ingredients:

4-6 zucchini, halved lengthwise

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1/2 onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1.5 lb of Bruce Ranch Ground Beef

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/2 cup black beans

1/2 cup chopped cherry tomatoes

1/2 cup corn

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Freshly chopped cilantro for garnish (optional)

Fresh lime juice (Optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Slice zucchini in half and carve out the middle with a spoon. Finely chop the part that was scooped out of the zucchini and set aside. Line zucchini boats on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or lightly oiled with olive oil.

Heat large skillet using medium heat, add your Bruce Ranch ground beef and begin to brown. Lightly salt and pepper the ground beef and cook for 2 minutes. Add the chopped onion and garlic and continue to cook for 2-3 minutes.

Add chili powder, cumin, paprika, black beans, corn and reserved zucchini into the ground beef and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 4-6 minutes. Add more salt if necessary. Cook until the ground beef is completely browned and the skillet ingredients are well-mixed.

Spoon mixture into zucchini boats and top each with some cherry tomatoes, and the cheeses.

Bake 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is fully melted and bubbly. Remove from oven and serve with a garnish of chopped cilantro.

For extra zest, drizzle a few drops of fresh lime juice over your zucchini boat before eating. Enjoy!