Quick Look:
Lasagna with Zucchini and Meat Sauce
- Ready In: 1 hour, 30 minutes.
- Serves: 10
- Protein: 26 grams per serving
- Main Ingredients: zucchini, ground beef, Italian sausage, marinara sauce, mozzarella, ricotta, parmesan.
- Dietary Info: dairy-free and gluten-free
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Why You’ll Fall In Love With This
Zucchini Lasagna Recipe
- Never a soggy bite: We’re sharing all of our tips and tricks to draw the moisture out of your zucchini slices to ensure that each bite is tender without being soggy.
- More protein, less carbs: Replacing traditional lasagna noodles with strips of lasagna lightens up this classic while still keeping all of the flavor that you know and love.
- Easy to follow instructions: I get it…the layering process of lasagna can feel daunting. But we’re breaking it down in easy to follow steps to help you get an effortless meal on the table.
Key Ingredients & Substitutions
Be sure to see the recipe card below for a full listing of ingredients, instructions, and estimated nutritional information.
- Ground Beef: We purposely chose lean ground beef to help decrease moisture and the Italian sausage helps to add a depth of flavor throughout.
- Ricotta: Make this recipe dairy-free by using our dairy-free ricotta cheese mixture and dairy-free mozzarella and parmesan.
- Marinara Sauce: This is the perfect opportunity to try your hand at our homemade marinara sauce, or just pick up your favorite store bought brand for when you’re in a pinch.
- Zucchini: If you’ve decided that zucchini noodles just aren’t for you, check out our lazy lasagna recipe, which uses traditional lasagna noodles.
How To Make Zucchini Lasagna With Meat Sauce
Step 1 – Slice zucchini, sprinkle with salt and let sit for at least 10 minutes to extract moisture.
Step 2 – Combine ricotta ingredients.
My Favorite Mandoline Slicer
My mandoline slicer is the kitchen MPV when I have any recipe that requires a lot of slicing or needs uniform slices. Just be sure to get and use the cut resistance gloves as a sliced finger tip is no fun… I speak from experience. We set our slicer to slice 1.5 cm thick slices, which makes for zucchini that is tender but firm enough to hold it’s shape after the cooking procoess.
Step 3 – Cook up the meat mixture and add in the basil and marinara.
Step 4 – Mix together the marinara and meat mixture.
Step 5 – Dab zucchini slices with a paper towel to absorb the extracted moisture.
Step 6 – Add a layer of the meat mixture to the bottom of your skillet.
Step 7 – Add a layer of zucchini.
Step 8 – Add another layer of the meat sauce.
Step 9 – Spread half of the ricotta mixture over the meat sauce.
Step 10 – Add another layer of zucchini slices.
Step 11 – Add another third of a cup of meat sauce, the last half of the ricotta filling, and the final layer of zucchini topped with meat sauce.
Step 12 – After baking for 25 minutes, add fresh mozzarella slices and bake for an additional 10 minutes.
How To Keep Zucchini Lasagna
From Getting Watery
- Salting and dabbing the zucchini slices dry are the most important steps to keeping your zucchini lasagna from getting watery. Be sure to allow the salt to work it’s magic for at least 10 minutes before dabbing.
- Pick small zucchinis as these have less water content than larger zucchinis.
- Use a turkey baster to suck out any unwanted moisture during the cooking process and use a slotted spatula when serving.
What To Serve With Zucchini Lasagna
The only thing that makes this warm and savory dish any better are the right side dishes! Make this a complete meal by pairing your zucchini lasagna with our light and crisp raw fennel salad. And if you still have room for dessert and leftover zucchini, whip up a batch of our delicious double-chocolate zucchini brownies.
Zucchini Lasagna Recipe FAQ & Tips
Your zucchini lasagna could be watery for a few different reasons including 1) not salting and dabbing dry the zucchini slices 2) not letting the slices rest between the salting process and dabbing process 3) choosing large zucchini that often have more moisture than smaller zucchinis.
We set our mandoline slicer to make 1.5 cm thick slices.
Yes! When your zucchini is fully cooled, transfer your zucchini lasagna into a freezer safe container with a lid. If you want single servings, cut your zucchini into single portions, place them in freezer safe containers, and place in your freezer. Your lasagna can stay frozen for about three months.
We use a 12 inch, deep cast iron skillet for this recipe, but you could easily use a 9×13 casserole dish. Just know that you might need a bit more zucchini.
Other Easy Lasagna Recipes You Might Like
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Ingredients
- 6-7 zucchini, sliced to 1.5 centimeters thick with mandolin*
- ½ pound lean ground beef
- ½ pound ground Italian sausage
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 2-3 teaspoons garlic, minced
- 24 ounces marinara sauce, store-bought or homemade
- ¼ cup fresh basil, roughly chopped (more for garnish)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus additional for zucchini
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, crushed (optional)
Ricotta Mixture:
- 15 ounces whole milk ricotta, or dairy-free, vegan ricotta cheese
- 1 ½ cups mozzarella cheese, shredded (or dairy-free)
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese, shredded (or dairy-free option)
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Toppings:
- 8 ounces fresh mozzarella slices, more if you want (sub dairy-free or regular grated mozzarella)
- fresh basil leaves
- parmesan cheese, grated (sub dairy-free option)
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350℉.
- Prep Zucchini: thinly slice 6-7 zucchini to 1.5 centimeters thick using a mandolin. Lay out on baking sheets and sprinkle with salt. Let sit while you prepare the other ingredients.
- Make Meat Sauce: bring a large cast iron skillet to medium-high heat. Add ½ pound lean ground beef and ½ pound ground Italian sausage. Move around pan until the meat is cooked through, drain excess grease. Add onion and 2-3 teaspoons garlic. Move around pan with the cooked meat until onion starts to soften, approx. 2-3 minutes. Add 24 ounces marinara sauce, ¼ cup fresh basil, 2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper and ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (if using). Stir to combine. Taste and add any additional salt or basil, as desired. Let simmer, uncovered, while you make the ricotta.
- Make Ricotta: In a medium mixing bowl, combine 15 ounces whole milk ricotta, 1 ½ cups mozzarella cheese, ¼ cup parmesan cheese, 1 egg, 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, 2 teaspoons lemon juice, and ½ teaspoon kosher salt.
- Finish Prepping Zucchini: Take clean paper towels and thoroughly pat dry the zucchini, soaking up as much liquid as possible and ensuring as the salt is wiped off.
- Make Lasagna: Add approx. 1/4 cup of the meat sauce mixture to the bottom of the skillet. Put down a layer of zucchini followed by 1/3 of the meat sauce followed by 1/2 of the ricotta mixture (I suggest putting little dollops all around and then gently spreading them out). Continue with another layer of zucchini and then press down firmly with flat hands to compress everything. Then add 1/3 of the meat sauce, the other 1/2 of the ricotta, a final layer of zucchini. Press down again with flat hands and then add the remaining meat sauce.
- Bake: Cover with foil and place in the oven, middle rack, for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and remove the foil. Cover with 8 ounces fresh mozzarella slices and return to the oven, uncovered, until cheese is melted (about 10 minutes).
- Serve: Remove and let cool slightly. It is almost impossible to remove all the water from the zucchini so you may have some settling on the sides – my best advice is to simply use a turkey baster or spoon to remove any excess liquid. Garnish with fresh basil and grated parmesan cheese.
Notes
- *Slicing zucchini: you don’t HAVE to use a mandolin, but that is the best way to get uniform, thin slices.
- Cast Iron Skillet size: I used a 12 inch, deep cast iron skillet for this recipe. You could easily alter the recipe a bit to use in a 9×13 baking dish – you might just need a bit more zucchini, but the meat sauce and ricotta should be fine.
- Watery: zucchini is nearly 100% water is it is hard to remove ALL of the water – expect some water to settle after cooking – this is normal! I like using a turkey baster to remove the water – see blog post above for more tips and tricks you can implement to remove additional water before cooking.
- Dairy-Free: use dairy-free ricotta (store-bought or homemade dairy-free ricotta) and dairy-free versions of mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
- Storage: store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 2-3 days.
Liz Sipley says
Thanks for this yummy and healthy recipe!