Taco Zucchini Lasagna
Taco Zucchini Lasagna was created because I was in the mood this week for something warm, festive and a little different.
The idea of a low carb Mex-Italian fusion dish was intriguing and had some challenges. They were tri-fold ; #1. Finding or creating just the right low carb lasagna-type noodles. #2. Making a marinara ala Mexico. #3. Keeping the carb count low enough with all the veggies in it and keeping the flavor and mouth satisfaction high.
I of course quickly realized I could slice zucchini very thinly length-wise on my mandolin slicer. (Use caution with a mandolin slicer, they are crazy sharp, but I love mine anyway.) You can of course alternatively slice the zukes in thin rounds if you wish.
Here’s a great little lasagna making secret I want to share with you: Spread a bit of sauce in the bottom of your prepared pan. It will keep the noodles (of any kind) from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Before I began the layering process I patted dry the Zucchini slices that had been sprinkled with salt to bring out the moisture. This dish could easily be too wet. This step really helps.
I stirred up the cheese to spread on the noodles which I made out of an egg and blended cottage cheese instead of the traditional ricotta because it saved 8 carbs in the recipe. There is also a generous amount of meat — much more than I would use in a carby lasagna because I wanted to insure taste and portion satisfaction.
I made a mild -flavored tomato Mex-Marinara which is yum, if I do say so myself.
I chose to use a shredded Colby-Jack Cheese because that is what was in the fridge, but revise the recipe as you wish.
Here it is, cheese bubbling, just out of the oven:
Guess I’ll be making up a batch of my ‘Game Day Guacamole’ because the Taco Zucchini Lasagna smelled so good, that I served it up immediately and forgot the avocado slices I’d prepared as a garnish. — Enjoy! — Laura
Taco Zucchini Lasagna
Ingredients
- 3 medium Zucchini
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 ½ lbs. ground beef 95% lean
- ½ medium onion chopped
- 2 T. Taco Seasoning Mix
- 2 cups Colby-Jack Shredded Cheese
- 1 cup 1% Cottage cheese
- 1 large egg
- 8 oz Tomato Sauce
- 15 oz Petite Cut Diced Tomatoes well drained
- ¼ tsp Chili Powder Spice
- ¼ tsp Paprika
- 3 T. Cilantro leaves chopped fine
- 1 tsp chopped garlic
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Spray 9 x 13 inch pan with vegetable spray.
- Slice Zucchini thinly lengthwise on a mandolin slicer or slice in thin rounds.
- Steam long zucchini slices in microwave in covered dish for 1 minute, in 3 separate batches.
- Remove zucchini ‘noodles’ from microwave and lay on paper towels flat, sprinkle with salt and set aside. (This step will help the zucchini be more pliable while assembling the lasagna and the salt will help remove excess moisture.)
- In a large sauté pan cook chopped onions in olive oil.
- Add ground beef and cook till brown and crumbly.
- In small mixing bowl or blender, mash or blend cottage cheese with egg till smooth. Set aside.
- In a small mixing bowl make the marinara by stirring together the drained diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, garlic, chili powder, paprika and 2 T. finely chopped cilantro.
- Cover zucchini slices with paper towels and press gently to remove excess moisture from the zucchini.
- Assemble Lasagna as follows:
- Divide your ingredients evenly between the three layers unless otherwise directed.
- To begin, Spread 1-2 T. prepared tomato sauce in bottom of pan.
- Cover the bottom of pan with zucchini noodles evenly.
- Spread a thin amount (1/3) of the cottage cheese mixture on the zucchini noodles.
- Sprinkle 1/3 of the meat mixture over the cottage cheese mixture.
- Evenly spoon-ladle 1/3 of the marinara over the meat.
- Sprinkle ½ cup of the Colby-Jack cheese over the marinara.
- Repeat the layering process 2 more times.
- On the 3rd layer (top layer) use all the remaining Colby-Jack cheese and sprinkle with the remaining finely chopped cilantro.
- Bake for 30-35 mins.
Thanks to these inspirations: