Happy Monday everyone! I’m having a slow morning over here since I am nursing a cold I got late last week. I think I jinxed myself the other day when I told Mitch I feel really lucky I’ve been so healthy during this pregnancy! You know you have a cold when you’re drinking hot tea with a blanket in Texas in August. How was everyone’s weekend? We went to dinner with friends on Friday to a new sushi place then headed to Dallas Saturday morning to go see Coldplay. Such a fun weekend seeing one of my all-time favorite bands (it’s been my dream to see them since high school) and exploring Dallas. We like where we live, but we both agree, Dallas is really up our alley. So many fun walkable restaurants, a bit of a younger, our-age crowd (sorry Woodlands!) and sooo dog friendly which was nice since we brought our June bug. We stopped at a dog park bar (!) called Mutts Cantina yesterday and it’s an outdoor restaurant/bar that doubles as an awesome dog park. There were so many people there drinking beer, eating burgers, sipping on frozen mimosas and watching their pups play. There was a $6 cover for dogs too.. 😉 We gave June an outdoor bath in their bath area on our way out then made our way back to Houston with a super clean dog. Go there if you live in Dallas!
Also worth mentioning was our dinner on Saturday night before the concert. We walked to a restaurant called Common Table and I got the best jalapeno turkey burger everrr. I was also super hungry so anything would have tasted good, but this really was one of the best burgers I’ve had. Mitch got a beef tenderloin and burrata cheese salad that looked just as good too.
So moving onto this lasagna. We looved this recipe. Not only was it so easy (as soon as I figured out how to use my new mandolin), it also tasted amazing and was so great to have in the fridge as leftovers for a day or so. Low carb and full of protein and flavor, I promise you won’t miss your noodles (too much).
When I made this lasagna I went back and forth between using ricotta and cottage cheese for my cheese layer. I ended up going with cottage cheese because that’s the way my mom made lasagna when we were growing up, but ricotta would work just as well if that’s what you prefer. Either option gives the lasagna a great texture and a big boost of calcium and protein.
For the meat sauce, I used my easy marinara recipe and just added a pound of ground beef, but feel free to use your favorite marinara whether it’s jarred or homemade.
After you’re done layering your noodles, sauce and cheese, finish with a sprinkling of shredded mozzarella and bake until golden brown and bubbly! Make sure to let it sit for about 5 minutes before eating so it has time to set. Enjoy!
- 2 large zucchini - sliced into long, flat noodles - I use a Mandolin
- 1 serving of my Easy Marinara Sauce (search blog for this recipe) or 1 jar of your favorite marinara
- 1 lb ground beef or turkey
- 1 cup cottage cheese (or ricotta if this is what you prefer)
- 1/4-1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese for topping
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Using a mandolin, or by using a knife (carefully!) slice the zucchini into lasagna-type noodles and set aside
- Brown the ground beef in a medium sauce-pan, then add the marinara into the same pot and stir to combine - keep on low heat until it's time to start layering
- In an 8x8 dish, start the lasagna by adding a layer of meat sauce to the bottom of the pan
- Layer the zucchini next, then more meat sauce then a few spoons of cottage cheese (or ricotta)
- Continue layering until you reach the top - make sure your last layer is a meat sauce layer and top with shredded cheese
- Bake in the oven for 40 minutes or until the top is bubbly and golden
- Let sit for about 10 minutes before cutting, and enjoy!
- If you prefer your lasagna more cheesy, add shredded cheese to each layer as well!
I have seen other ppl comment on zucchini lasagna dishes and they said that the zucchini released so much water that the lasagna turned into more of a soup…did you experience this
Hi Cher, I personally didn’t find this recipe too “soupy”, but if you are worried about it, it helps to bake the zucchini slices prior to layering (350 degree oven for about 5-10 mins). I made sure to let my lasagna rest for about 10 minutes before cutting and I think it helped keep it from being too watery.