Pesto Chicken Stuffed Zucchini Boats
Ingredients:
For the pesto:
3/4 cup packed fresh cilantro
1/2 cup cashews (raw or roasted is fine)
1 jalapeno, seeds removed
2 cloves garlic
1/2 lime, juiced
3 tablespoons avocado or olive oil
2-3 tablespoons water, to thin pesto
3/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
For the zucchini boats:
Olive oil
4 medium zucchini, sliced in half lengthwise (look for zucchini that is similar in size)
3/4 pound (about 2 cups) cooked shredded chicken breast (can also be from a rotisserie chicken)
½ cup roughly chopped cherry tomatoes
1 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
Optional: ¼ cup parmesan cheese
To garnish:
Extra cilantro and quartered cherry tomatoes
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 9x13 inch pan with olive oil.
Make the pesto: add all pesto ingredients to the bowl of a food processor: cilantro, cashews, jalapeño, garlic cloves, lime juice, olive oil, water and salt and pepper. Process until smooth, scraping down the sides and processing again, if necessary.
Transfer pesto to a large bowl and stir in the shredded chicken, chopped cherry tomatoes and ½ cup mozzarella cheese (we’re reserving the rest of the cheese for topping).
Using a spoon, scoop centers from zucchini while leaving a 1/4-inch rim to create boats. Place zucchini in the greased pan; they should snuggle pretty tightly in there, but if you can’t fit them all in, you can use two pans. Brush zucchini with a little olive oil (about 1 tablespoon or so). You can also simply spray them with an all natural oil-only cooking spray.
Spoon pesto chicken mixture evenly into zucchini boats. Top each with 1 1/2 tablespoons of mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with parmesan if desired.
Cover with foil, and bake for 35-45 minutes or until cheese has melted and zucchini is tender. Once done, sprinkle the tops with cilantro and extra cherry tomatoes before serving. Serves 4; 2 boats per person.
Recipe Notes
If you prefer, you can use 3/4 cup store-bought pesto or your favorite pesto recipe. This one is cilantro based, but basil would also be fabulous.
To make vegetarian: sub chickpeas, cooked quinoa or even tofu for the chicken.
Nutrition
Servings: 4 servings
Serving size: 2 zucchini boats
Calories: 405kcal
Fat: 25.4g
Saturated fat: 6.5g
Carbohydrates: 15.7g
Fiber: 5g
Sugar: 5.6g
Protein: 31.6g
Courtesy of Ambitious Kitchen
