Ground Beef with Tomatoes and Zucchini
Summertime brings out the best in so many things, including local vegetables. We love taking a long trip to the farmers market to see what is available and chat with the growers. Zucchini and tomatoes are both sweet vegetables and when combined with the ground beef, this recipe is a winner! The fragrance of fresh basil really adds to the variety of fresh flavors.
You can use any type of ground beef for this dish, but because we don't eat a great deal of red meat anymore we tend to stick with the lean 96% beef when we do. Using 96% beef will give you the flavor that you are looking for as well as a meal that is lower in fat.
This certainly is not a spicy beef dish but it is a super quick and easy dinner (as long as you prepare the rice a head of time). We loved this dish because it was filling, low in sodium, high in protein and stuffed with healthy nutrients (especially vitamins b6, b12 and c and also zinc, manganese, and selenium). This did have some trans fat per serving.
- 1 lb. 96% lean ground beef
- 1 large zucchini, sliced
- 1 large tomato, chopped
- 1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 2 teaspoons dried garlic flakes
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil or 2 teaspoons dried basil, chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Cracked pepper to taste
- Preheat a non stick pan over medium-high heat.
- Brown ground meat for about 3 minutes until cooked through.
- Add the zucchini, onions and stir fry 8-10 minutes until vegetables are browned. (If you are using fresh garlic cloves - add them when you add the zucchini and onions.)
- Add tomato and cook 3-4 minutes.
- Stir in garlic flakes, basil, olive oil and pepper.
- Serve over 1/2 cup prepared rice (included in the nutritional information below).