Zucchini Lasagna (2024)

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This Zucchini Lasagna is low fat, gluten-free, Keto friendly, ridiculously delicious and only 368 calories! This lasagna uses zucchini in place of pasta thereby reducing calories. Guilt free!

Table of Contents

Zucchini Lasagna

We’re talking lots of layers of zucchini, mushrooms, a delicious beef sauce and, of course, loaded with lots of cheese. At 368 calories a serving, you can eat lots of this decadent and delicious lasagna, guilt free! Seriously!

I shared this recipe with you almost 6 years ago, when I first made this with my friend. Back then, I didn’t know anything about Keto but I always did try to eat less carbs, especially at the beginning of the year. You know when resolutions of eating healthy are still fresh.

So this gorgeous lasagna is what my friend and I came up with, over a glass of wine, or two. It has zucchini in place of noodles, a delicious tomato sauce with ground beef and amazing spices, mushrooms and mozzarella cheese, ricotta and Parmesan cheese.

How to Prepare The Zucchini

The star of this dish is the zucchini. Zucchini slices is what replaces our lasagna noodles. Lasagna noodles be gone, we don’t need you anymore! While you can use a knife to slice the zucchini, nothing beats a mandoline. It’s quick and painless.

What I didn’t show you in the video, is how to get the water out of the zucchini, because zucchini is pretty watery. However, this problem is very easy to take care of. Simply lay out the zucchini slices over some paper towels, drizzle some salt over the slices of zucchini, then place another paper towel over the top to soak up all that water.

You’ll notice that within a couple minutes the paper towels will be wet already. Another solution, would be to grill the zucchini slices or even bake them in the oven.

What Other Veggies Can You Use

This lasagna is perfect for loading it up with veggies. I used layers of mushrooms which are great because not only do they provide lots of flavor but they are also quite meaty.

Other veggies you could use are peppers, lots of spinach, onions, eggplants or even pumpkin. Use your favorite veggies, you really can’t go wrong.

How to Make Zucchini Lasagna

To make zucchini lasagna is the same as making any regular lasagna. I like to start by making the beef sauce first because it needs to simmer for about 15 minutes. While the sauce is simmering, you can prepare the zucchini as instructed.

Once the sauce and zucchini slices are ready, all that’s left to do is assemble and bake.

How to Assemble Zucchini Lasagna

Make sure you prepare all your ingredients and they are all ready to use. This will make your lasagna assembly super quick and easy.

In a 9×13 inch baking dish, start with a layer of zucchini, followed by a thin layer of mozzarella cheese, mushroom slices, beef sauce, then ricotta cheese. Repeat 2 more times. Here is the order of the layers:

Zucchini slices
Mozzarella cheese
Mushrooms
Sauce
Ricotta cheese
Zucchini slices
Mozzarella cheese
Mushrooms
Sauce
Ricotta cheese
Zucchini slices
Mozzarella cheese
Mushrooms
Sauce
Ricotta cheese
Mozzarella slices
Parmesan cheese

How Long to Bake

It takes about 40 to 50 minutes to bake this zucchini lasagna at 375 F degrees. Bake it until the sauce and cheese get all bubbly, and the cheese starts to get golden brown on top.

There really is no need to cover the lasagna with foil as you bake it, however you could cover it with aluminum foil for the first 30 minutes, and bake it uncovered for the rest of the time.

Make Ahead

For sure! If you’d like to prepare ahead of time, I recommend freezing it before baking it. Simply assemble the lasagna as stated in the recipe, cover it with foil or plastic wrap tightly. I also recommend placing the whole dish it in a large freezer bag, this way it will last for about 2 to 3 months in the freezer.

When ready to bake, thaw out the lasagna in the fridge for 24 hours. Once it has defrosted, bake as instructed at 375 degrees for about 40 to 50 minutes.

Leftovers

Cool the lasagna completely then cover it with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate. It will last 3 to 5 days in the refrigerator.

Freezing

Yes, as mentioned above, assemble the zucchini lasagna as stated, then cover it with foil or plastic wrap tightly. Place the whole dish in a large freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.

Looking for More Lasagna Recipes? Try These:

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4.59 from 229 votes

Zucchini Lasagna

Prep 30 minutes minutes

Cook 1 hour hour

Total 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

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Video

Ingredients

Meat Sauce

▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
▢ 1 large onion (chopped)
▢ 4 cloves garlic (minced)
▢ 1 pound ground beef (extra lean)
▢ 2 bay leaves
▢ ½ teaspoon cinnamon
▢ 1 teaspoon oregano (dried)
▢ ½ teaspoon pepper
▢ 1 tablespoon hot sauce
▢ 28 ounce crushed tomatoes ((1 can))

Zucchini Lasagna

▢ 3 large zucchini
▢ 3 cups mozzarella cheese (shredded)
▢ 2 cups mushrooms (slices, I used white mushrooms)
▢ 1½ cups ricotta cheese
▢ ½ cup Parmesan cheese (grated)
▢ 1 tablespoon parsley (for garnish)

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Instructions

Make sauce: Add the olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium heat. Add onion and cook for a couple minutes until onion is soft. Add garlic and ground beef and break the ground beef with a wooden spoon.
Cook until the meat is no longer pink. Add bay leaves, cinnamon, oregano, pepper, hot sauce and stir. Cook for a couple more minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, stir and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.
Prepare zucchini: While the sauce is simmering you can prepare the zucchini, by either using a knife to slice them or using a mandoline. Slice the zucchini so they are about 1/8 of an inch in thickness.
Preheat oven to 375℉. Use a 9×13 inch baking dish.
Assemble lasagna: Start with a layer of zucchini slices. Top the zucchini layer with a bit of mozzarella cheese and then a layer of mushroom slices. Next add a layer of the meat sauce, followed by dollops of ricotta cheese. Repeat so that you end up with 3 layers of zucchini. When you get to the last layer of ricotta cheese, top with shredded mozzarella or slices of mozzarella cheese. Finally sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the top.
Bake:Transfer the baking Bake for about 40 to 50 minutes or until the top is starting to get golden and the cheese is bubbly.
Garnish with parsley. Allow the lasagna to sit and settle for about 10 to 15 minutes before slicing into it and serving.

Notes

Optional step 1- remove excess water from the zucchini: Lay out the zucchini slices over some paper towels, drizzle some salt over the slices of zucchini, then place another paper towel over the top to soak up all the water.
You’ll notice that within a couple minutes the paper towels will be wet already. Another solution, would be to grill the zucchini slices or even bake them in the oven.
Notice I did not add any salt. Usually I don’t add salt when cooking with lots of cheese as the cheese is salty enough, but feel free to season with salt as preferred.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1servingCalories: 368kcal (18%)Carbohydrates: 15g (5%)Protein: 28g (56%)Fat: 22g (34%)Saturated Fat: 11g (69%)Cholesterol: 86mg (29%)Sodium: 556mg (24%)Potassium: 875mg (25%)Fiber: 3g (13%)Sugar: 8g (9%)Vitamin A: 920IU (18%)Vitamin C: 31.1mg (38%)Calcium: 402mg (40%)Iron: 3.3mg (18%)

Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.