By replacing the pasta with thin sliced zucchini you can create a delicious low carb, lighter lasagna and you won't miss the pasta!
This recipe passes the picky daughter seal of approval! I just love how zucchini is so versatile, it's an absolute winner in this recipe. I used my mandoline
to slice the zucchini which made slicing quick and easy. You can make the sauce ahead of time or the day before, I like to double my sauce and freeze the rest for quick weeknight meals. Zucchini Lasagna
Servings: 6 • Serving Size: 1/6th • Old Points: 8.5 pts • Points+: 10 pts
Calories: 418.8 • Fat: 17.6 g • Protein: 39.2 g • Carb: 20.9 g • Fiber: 3.1 g - 1 lb 93% lean beef
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/2 onion
- 1 tsp olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
- 3 medium zucchini, sliced 1/8" thick
- 15 oz fat free ricotta
- 16 oz reduced fat mozzarella cheese, shredded (Weight Watchers)
- 1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano
- 1 large egg
On a gas grill or in the broiler, grill zucchini on each side, until cooked, about 1-2 minutes per side.
In a medium sauce pan, brown meat and season with salt. When cooked drain in colander to remove any fat. Add olive oil to the pan and saute garlic and onions about 2 minutes. Return the meat to the pan, add tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper. Simmer on low for at least 30-40minutes, covered. Do not add extra water, the sauce should be thick.
Meanwhile, slice zucchini into 1/8" thick slices, add salt and set aside or 10 minutes. Zucchini has a lot of water when cooked, salting it takes out a lot of moisture. After 10 minutes, blot excess moisture with a paper towel.
In a medium bowl mix ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and egg. Stir well.
Preheat oven to 350°.
In a 9x12 casserole spread some sauce on the bottom and layer the zucchini to cover. Then place some of the ricotta cheese mixture, then top with the mozzarella cheese and repeat the process until all your ingredients are used up. Top with sauce and mozzarella and cover with foil.
Bake 45 minutes covered at 375°, then uncovered 15 minutes. Let stand about 5 - 10 minutes before serving.
** After making this recipe several times, I found it's best to grill or broil the zucchini first so you don't get all the excess liquid from the zucchini when it bakes. This recipe is a keeper, enjoy!!
Looks delicious! Definitely going to have to make this - your website is awesome!!! Thanks so much for posting all these delicious recipes & the WW values.
ReplyDeleteLooks so good, you could fool anyone into thinking this is fatty.
ReplyDeleteWowza! That looks delicious! Your pictures are always so beautiful! What kind of camera do you have???
ReplyDeleteI love your blog, I visit everyday to see if there are any new recipes. This looks so good...I love zucchini but don't have many recipes using them and now after finding your site I have a lot. I love how you have the ww points factored and the recipes are so easy. I get overwhelmed when there are too many ingredients that I'm not familiar with. Can't wait to try this! :)
ReplyDelete@Lindsay I have so many recipes for zucchini it should have it's own tag! I like to keep it simple, I don't have much time to do otherwise. I'm glad you like it!
ReplyDelete@Marisa it's a Canon Digital Rebel XTi
Love this recipe ... looks really delicious ... Laila .. http://limeandlemon.wordpress.com
ReplyDeleteThis looks amazing! Love zucchini!
ReplyDeleteThis looks so good!! I am going to make this dish this weekend, thanks for the great recipe
ReplyDeleteI did something like this once. Looks wonderful!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the Twitter add...this looks refreshingly good and just as filling as the usual lasagnas.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea, to use zucchini instead of noodles. I have to try this! Another good substitute is polenta.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful zucchini slices! I'm not a fan of the vegetable but I would definitely eat this.
ReplyDeleteGorgeous pictures! I can not wait until summer when the garden is literally bursting with zucchini and fresh tomatoes that I can slow roast to make the sauce.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your recipe!
This was sooo delicious! The family - yes even the kids, loved it!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing!
The recipe looks great! One question...does the zucchini make it watery? thanks!
ReplyDeleteLaurie
Looks fantastic!!! Any idea what it would be without the meat?
ReplyDeleteMine is in the oven right now. Hope it will look as amazing as the photo! But I only used 8oz of mozzarella. 16oz seemed too much. We'll see...
ReplyDeleteMade this tonight. Tastes really good but there is soooo much liquid in it. I had to put it under the broiler to brown the top.
ReplyDeleteYes, the zuchini does have a lot of liquid in it, I found after making it several times if you grill or broil the zucchini first, you won't have all the liquid.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if you could use Eggplant for this as well
ReplyDeleteMade this last nite-it was delicious! Had to cook it for about 1.5 hours total, next time I wil broil the zucchini first to reduce the liquid. Thank you so much
ReplyDeleteI agree, after making this several times, I find it best to grill or broil the zucchini first so you don't get all the liquid. This is better than eggplant parmesan in my opinion!!
ReplyDeleteI used a 10" x 14" pan--How many points would this be for a serving and how big is the serving? My partner loves this but is concerned about having too big of a portion--he measured about 2-2/3 cups for one serving. How many points would this be?
ReplyDeleteThe entire dish is a total of 51 points, so it depends on how many servings you got if you used the same amount of ingredients.
ReplyDeleteThis dish looks so delicious! I'm going to start low carbing again this coming Sunday. I'm going to keep this recipe to try out.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing it!
Me too Tami! Figured I'd reduce my carbs for a few weeks!
ReplyDeleteIlove yor site.thank you for your recipes.what would the points be without using the meat. or adding noodles to it.where I could serve it with a meat on the side
ReplyDeleteI will try it with zucchini. I have made this with cabbage leaves and my family loves it.
ReplyDeleteYou have preheat to 350 and then cook at 375. Which is best? THanks!!!
ReplyDeleteGood catch, 375!
ReplyDeleteHi Gina, relative newbie to your site, and I'm a big fan.
ReplyDeleteQuestion: I live in Ireland, and sadly there's no such thing here as fat-free ricotta :(
How bout I used some cottage cheese after blitzing it a little to smooth the texture. Would that work?
Sure I think that should work fine. Or, low fat ricotta if you can find that.
ReplyDeleteThis looks so good! I wonder if I could make it without the beef, as my husband is a vegetarian?
ReplyDeleteSure! Less points too!!
ReplyDeleteThank you for ths awesome webiste! I can not wait to plan next weeks menu. this looks great, I make lasagna stuffed green peppers. I cut the peppers length wise, steam for four minutes, layer inside the pepper. (no noodles ofcourse). Will try this, but use half the meat for less points!
ReplyDeleteYUM!!! Made this last night and it was delicious!
ReplyDeleteThis is sooooooo good!!! I've made it 5 times now...my husband and kids love it. :) I make it with ground turkey instead of beef and it's delicious :) :) :)
ReplyDeleteexcited to try this one! zucchini plants are in my garden about to burst and i'm going to try it with turkey sausage instead of beef!
ReplyDelete@Jessica, Lucky you and great idea using turkey sausage, yum!
ReplyDeleteHi Gina - LOVE your site!!! You have helped me stay on track with WW with your awesome recipes! Question.. If you substitute ground turkey for ground beef does it lower the points? Thanks from a huge (getting smaller) fan!
ReplyDeleteDepending on which ground turkey you use. The 99% lean would lower the points slightly.
ReplyDeletehey, thank you for this recipe, I put it in the oven just now, I am so excited but I found out about to grill the zucchini too late :( maybe you should move this note to the top so maybe other people won't make the same mistake as me... :)
ReplyDeletehow long do u broil/grill the zucchini before putting it in the cassarole?
ReplyDeleteSorry about that! Grill it until it cooks, depending on the heat, about 2-3 minutes?
ReplyDeleteWith all my beef recipes I used only half a pound of beef and substitute the other half with grated carrots. When they cook together the carrots take on the taste and consistency of the beef and it halves the calories. I do this for meatloaf, hamburger patties and anything else I use beef for.
ReplyDeleteHow many points would I save if I did this for this recipe? Also when you say lean beef is 93% lean ok? That's about the leanest I can ind in the Commissary here on base .
Was wondering that also...when you say lean beef---what percentage are you using to get this point value?
ReplyDeleteThis is an earlier recipe, so I don't recall, I will recalculate this one and check. The leanest you can find in your supermarket.
ReplyDeleteThis looks yummy :) i usually do my lasagna with eggplant, i grill it, bake it in the oven or simply microwave it first. It's sooooo good! even vegetable haters love my half-veggie lasagna :D
ReplyDeleteHi Gina...I made this last weekend and my husband & I just LOVED it. Yum! He is requesting it again this weekend but I have switched over to Points +. Do you have either the nutrition info or the P+ value for this recipe? Thanks. Tanya
ReplyDeletemade this the other night, very good recipe. I think I like it better than Eggplant Parmesan too. I used 1.25 lb. of 93% lean ground turkey, next time I will add 1-2 links of spicy turkey sausage. Used a 26oz. jar of Safeway Select Garlic Basil pasta sauce which only has 6g of carbs. per serving and has whole cloves of garlic in it. Also, I did broil a large zucchini, sliced, and that did help with excess moisture. Could have used a little more spice, even though I did use garlic powder and ground fennel.Will add whole fennel next time. Very moist and creamy. will have leftovers tonite.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE that you added fennel to this, I will try this next time I make it. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeletethis looks delicious! does anyone have any ideas on a vegetarian friendly substitute for the beef?
ReplyDeleteI think sauteed chopped eggplant would be a great replacement!
ReplyDeleteHi Gina,
ReplyDeleteI love this recipe! I have found a reliable way to remove excess liquid from the zucchini strips. I slice them "thick" using my mandoline (about 1/8" thick) and then steam them in a double boiler for 8-10 minutes, depending on the water content. I try to time it so that they don't fall apart, so that they can be easily layered into the lasagna. The excess liquid drips into the bottom of the double boiler, and that's it! It also has the added bonus of requiring no oil, as a grill pan might. Thanks a million for your delicious recipes using "real" food! Your site has helped me to reach 10% loss, which I achieved two days after Christmas, believe it or not! Thanks again!
Hi Gina,
ReplyDeleteI'm planning to make this recipe but I'm a bit confused with the directions about the zuchini. The first step in the directions you say to grill/broil the zuchini for 1-2 minutes "each side." Do you do this before you slice it since you say in the 3rd step after making the sauce to slice them, then salt them and set them aside for 10 minutes. Just wondering if I am reading that correctly? THANK YOU!
Sorry lynne for the confusion, I had to change it after I posted after making this several times I found slicing, then grilling or broiling them helps prevent excess liquid that comes out when you cook the zucchini. So to answer you, cut, then grill/broil, then proceed with directions.
ReplyDeleteYUMMMMMMY!!! Thanks for clarifying the directions about the zuchini for me. That helped. I made this tonight for dinner and it was a hit with the family! You are right about the getting the water out of the zuchini but even though I still had a little that was in the bottom of the pan, it didn't matter once it was dished up on the plate. It was so tasty!! My family is already saying they can't wait until tomorrow for the leftovers. :) THANKS Gina for giving us great recipes that still contain LOADS of flavor without all the empty calories/fat etc.
ReplyDeleteThis recipe is fantastic--don't even miss the noodles! The portions are huge too!
ReplyDeleteThis recipe was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. I didn't look ahead like a smart person, so it ended up taking a lot longer than anticipated (even canceled going over to my brother's house for a party, its ok, I got to hang out with him the night before!) but it was COMPLETELY worth it!!! I took all of your advice, boiling the zucchini beforehand, salting/blotting them after slicing to cut down on the extra moisture and I must say it all worked like an absolute charm! I had no problems whatsoever with extra water in the dish! THANK YOU for sharing this! ~WOW~
ReplyDeleteIt's such a great low carb alternative to lasagna! Hope you broiled it rather than boiled it though! Grilling it would be great too now that it's warm!
ReplyDeleteI salted & sweated the zucchini first, then dried them with paper towels, then broiled them. Instead of 16oz of mozzarella I used a 200g package (just under 8oz), for a revised pointplus value of 8. And the result was... delicious. I have never been disappointed in your recipes, Gina! Looking forward to leftovers all week. How well would this freeze?
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Araz
Great Araz, I'm sure it would freeze just fine!
ReplyDeleteI tried this last night. YUMMY! I forgot to salt the zucchini first I think because I was in a little bit of a rush. I did broil it a bit, but I think it was still a bit runny. I"ll have to keep playing with it because we all liked it so much! Thanks for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteDo you think you could replace the zucchini with yellow squash? Or would that be weird? haha.
ReplyDeleteI just grated the rest of my zucchini for the bread, another of Gina's recipes, so this will have to wait until next week!! I've heard of this before, but never come across a recipe before. I love the photo of the sliced zucchini, I just want to bite in! Alison in Boston.
ReplyDeleteYou say to preheat to 350 but then you say to bake at 375. Which is best?
ReplyDelete375 would be best!
ReplyDeleteI love your blog,I have a ton of spaghetti squash.Do you have any good recipes I could try with my squash?
ReplyDeleteHi Gina. I think this my favourite recipe on your site! (And that's saying a lot. There are so many good ones.) I'm writing to say that I think I've found a good way to reduce the liquid. I froze enough zucchini slices for one lasagna recipe. When the zucchini was defrosted, a large amount of liquid came out. I squeezed the slices, and they held their shape really well. It is great if you have lots of zucchini in the summer and don't know what to do with it. I also prefer all the mozzarella on the top. Seems like more cheese then. More cheese is always good! :) Thanks again for your wonderful recipes.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing Kathryn, I love this too! That sounds like an easy solution.
ReplyDeleteAnon- I have a bunch of recipes for spaghetti squash, you can do a search at the top right.
ReplyDeleteyou should try using ground turkey and adding in spinach and mushrooms. alternate zucchini and noodles to vary texture, if desired.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWow... my husband, who doesn't like zucchini, said this is the best lasagna he's ever eaten! I sliced the zucchini with the mandoline, salted and blotted, then broiled. I also subbed turkey for beef and used reduced fat ricotta instead of fat free. My discriminating, meat-loving brother loved it, and said he might add crushed red pepper to the sauce to make it spicy. Thanks, Gina!
ReplyDeleteKatie, I know! It's a few extra steps but soo good!!
ReplyDeleteMine turned out SO salty because of the zucchini. It was hard to even eat. Can you broil the zucchini without salting it? I salted and broiled it and I blotted the zucchini after salting. The rest of it was delicious.
ReplyDeleteWow thats an amazing recipe! would love to try it out
ReplyDeleteWow - this recipe is fantastic! A little long on the prep work, but so so worth it! This will definitely become a regular of mine!
ReplyDelete