• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Recipe Index

Feasting not Fasting

Because life's too short to be hungry

  • Home
  • About
    • Collaboration
    • Contact
  • Recipe Index
    • 30-Minute Meals
    • Appetizers
    • Baked Goods
    • Breakfast
    • Desserts
    • Drinks and Smoothies
    • Lunches
    • Main Dishes
    • Salads
    • Sauces and Condiments
    • Side Dishes
    • Snacks
    • Soups & Stews
  • By Method
    • Air Fryer
    • Blender
    • Crock Pot/Slow Cooker
    • Freezer
    • Instant Pot
    • Oven
  • By Diet
    • Dairy-Free
    • Gluten-Free
    • Keto
    • Low-Carb
    • Vegan
    • Vegetarian
  • Appetizers
  • Baked Goods
  • Breakfast
  • Desserts
  • Main Dishes
  • Salads
  • Side Dishes
  • Snacks
Home » Recipes » Main Dishes » Zucchini Lasagna

Zucchini Lasagna

October 24, 2019 by Christy 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.

Pin Jump to Recipe

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.

Pin76
Share
Tweet
Yum
76 Shares

The best zucchini lasagna recipe that is naturally keto, gluten free, and lightened up with ground turkey, but full of protein and bursting with flavor!

Table of Contents

  • How to make zucchini lasagna
  • Tips for making the best zucchini lasagna 
  • Making zucchini lasagna ahead of time 
  • Storing, freezing and reheating zucchini lasagna
  • Other recipes you’ll love
  • Zucchini Lasagna
    • Equipment
    • Ingredients 
    • Instructions
    • Notes
    • Nutrition
      • did you make this recipe?

close up overhead picture of zucchini lasagna

Where are my fellow lasagna fans at? This turkey zucchini lasagna recipe lets you ditch those noodles and replace them with zucchini! You won’t sacrifice any of the flavor that we all love in the classic casserole but this recipe lightens it up considerably. With enough other flavors, you won’t even know you’re using turkey instead of ground beef either!

I’m not going to try to lie to you, this recipe has multiple steps. If you’re short on time and looking for a meal with less than 30 minutes of prep time, check out these spinach artichoke stuffed portobello mushrooms or this sausage potato skillet. 

Buttt, if you’ve got the time, I promise this recipe is worth it! Plus, if you make it on the weekend, it reheats well for quick veggie-filled weekday lunches or dinners. 

If you need to/choose to follow a low-carb diet but are still craving comfort food, you’re going to love this. Heck, even if you aren’t, it’s still a winner! It’s gluten-free and Keto friendly so it works for various dietary preferences. 

I don’t follow any of those diets but do love that zucchini lasagna allows me to get my veggies in while meeting my comfort food needs. Cause lets face it, this time of year, comfort food is a need, not a want. 

hand serving slice of zucchini lasagna

How to make zucchini lasagna

As with the classic, zucchini lasagna is all about the layers baby. Since it has to simmer, you start by making the sauce. There are a few quick steps to get rolling: 

  1. Sauté the onion in a little bit of oilpan with wooden spoon, sauteed onions and garlic
  2. Add garlic and cook a minute longerpan with sauteed onions and wooden spoon
  3. Brown the turkey by adding it in with the onions. Break it up into small pieces while it cooks.pan with cooked ground turkey and wooden spoon
  4. Add everything else and simmer, simmer, simmer!pan with red sauce and bay leaf

While the sauce is simmering, this is the time to get that zucchini roasting. Use a mandolin slicer to get even, thin layers. Don’t follow my poor example in the picture below and use the guide that comes with the mandolin to avoid slicing your fingers. Trust me, it hurts like a son of a b*tch to get your finger cut in one of these.

zucchini being sliced on mandolin slicer

From here, you lay the zucchini out in a single layer on a baking sheet that you’ve sprayed with cooking spray. Mine almost always take up one sheet, but if you have extra zucchini layers, you can either pull another sheet out or do a second batch.

Sprinkle those zucchini slices with a bit of salt and pepper and then let them roast.

baking sheet with sliced zucchini laid out on it

While the zucchini is roasting, you can go ahead and mix the ricotta, egg, parmesan, and nutmeg so that it’s ready for layering. This combo is the exact same one I use in when making regular lasagna with noodles.

The egg and ricotta make that cheesy layer that makes lasagna so to die for. The nutmeg is barely detectable and can be left out but adds a nice hint of flavor.

bowl with ricotta, egg, and nutmeg

Then when the zucchini is roasted and the sauce is done simmering, it’s time for some layering. In this recipe, the way you layer really matters. I start with a layer of sauce to keep everything else from sticking. 

baking dish with layer of red sauce

From here, do your first zucchini layer. Not to worry, your zucchini layer can be patchy like mine. 😉

baking dish with red sauce and zucchini slices

Then, you rub that zucchini down with the ricotta mixture. It can be hard to spread so I normally just plop a few globs down in a few spots and then spread as best as I can.

baking dish with zucchini and ricotta smeared on top

Then a cheese layer because cheese is essential in zucchini lasagna (or any lasagna recipe really). 

baking dish with cheese layer of casserole

You’ll repeat all layers once and then your very last top layer is just going to be sauce and cheese. Trust me on this, you want a little more sauce and cheese in the mix.

baking dish with lasagna layer

Bake your zucchini lasagna in a preheated oven for 30 minutes and voila! You’ve got yourself an incredible meal!

I like to sprinkle parsley on top but if you don’t want to have to buy another herb and have fresh basil already, you can definitely use a bit of that instead. Or, you can skip it altogether of course. It’s really just there for a pop of color.

cooked white dish of zucchini lasagna

Tips for making the best zucchini lasagna 

Although turkey zucchini lasagna is a pretty straight forward recipe, there are definitely some steps that’ll guarantee success. 

  • Use zucchini that are 1-2 inches in diameter. I tried using big fresh garden zucchini once and it was just too watery and the seeds got caught in the mandolin. If you are using big garden zucchini, you might want to sweat the zucchini slices before baking. To do this, sprinkle with salt, let sit for 20-30 minutes and then rinse and pat dry.
  • Use a mandolin slicer! It’s really hard to cut the zucchini the right thickness without one. 
  • If your zucchini looks watery after baking at all, pat it dry with clean kitchen towels or paper towels before using in the lasagna. This is a must for watery zucchini slices.
  • Let your sauce simmer the full 30 minutes. Don’t skimp on this or it won’t have as much flavor!

bite on a fork of zucchini lasagna

Making zucchini lasagna ahead of time 

By making the recipe ahead of time, I mean doing the prep early, refrigerating, and then doing the final bake later, right before eating. I do this all of the time with regular lasagna, but with zucchini lasagna, it is harder.

The zucchini will continue to release water unlike noodles that absorb water. This means that you’ll need to get as much of the water out as possible or end up with a watery end product. 

If you do decide to prep your zucchini lasagna ahead of time, make sure to bake it within 24 hours at the absolute most. Also, you’ll need to get as much water out of those zucchini slices as possible so definitely use paper towels or a kitchen towel to blot all extra moisture out of the cooked zucchini slices. 

Even if you do everything right, when making ahead of time it will most likely be a bit more watery. The good news is that the extra water can just be left at the bottom of the casserole dish and won’t affect the flavor one bit.

overhead picture of two plates and casserole dish of zucchini lasagna

Storing, freezing and reheating zucchini lasagna

There are two different ways to freeze and store your zucchini lasagna: cooked or uncooked.

If it is fully cooked and you just have more than you can eat, I recommend storing individual portions in plastic airtight containers. When you pull a serving out to eat it, microwave for 30-60 seconds, then cut the serving into four pieces to make sure the middle gets warmed as well. Microwave on high for another minute or until fully heated.  

The other option is to freeze the whole prepared casserole before doing the final 30 minute bake. This allows you to have a full meal on hand that is ready to bake for a busy weeknight meal, but the trade-off is that the zucchini lasagna will be a lot more watery when you finally do go to bake it and won’t have as much texture and crunch from the zucchini.

If you’re okay with this, make sure to use the oven-safe baking container that you want to freeze the casserole in, then seal the top liberally with plastic. Let the casserole freeze laying flat and then keep frozen for up to 3 months.

Pull it out of the oven the night before you want to bake it and allow it to defrost in the refrigerator that night and the following day. Bake for 30-40 minutes prior to serving. 

plate with zucchini lasagna on it

Other recipes you’ll love

If you’re looking for other dinner recipes, here are some suggestions:

  • Eggplant lasagna roll ups – one of my favorite recipes to make!
  • Quick and easy Mexican quinoa casserole
  • Fall favorite brown rice risotto with butternut squash and mushrooms
  • Creamy chicken stroganoff 
  • Easy chicken potato bake 

Or, if you have more zucchini to use up and need a few zucchini filled recipes, here are a few ideas:

  • This chocolate zucchini bread (we always demolish it in a day or less so be warned, it’s addicting!)
  • My grilled zucchini with feta, basil, and balsamic glaze 
  • Our favorite zucchini pizza bites – perfect for game day!
  • Zucchini fritters with yogurt dill dipping sauce
  • Zucchini, tomato dip – I promise it tastes better than it looks
  • Primavera Kitchen’s low carb chicken zucchini lasagna 
  • The Healthy Maven’s grain free chocolate zucchini muffins 

close up picture of serving of zucchini lasagna                    

Recipe
close up overhead picture of zucchini lasagna
Recipe
5 from 2 votes
click the stars to rate!

Zucchini Lasagna

Created by: Christy Gurin
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Cook Time 50 minutes mins
Resting Time 10 minutes mins
Print Recipe
Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Cook Time 50 minutes mins
8
The best zucchini lasagna recipe that is naturally keto, gluten free, and lightened up with ground turkey, but full of protein and bursting with flavor!

Equipment

  • mandolin slicer

Ingredients
 

  • 1/2 Tbsp. avocado oil (or whatever oil you prefer)
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 tsp minced garlic
  • 1 lb. lean ground turkey
  • 1 1/2 tsp. salt (plus extra for zucchini slices)
  • 1/2 tsp. pepper (plus extra for zucchini slices)
  • 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
  • 1 1/2 tsp. dried basil, divided (or 2 Tbsp. fresh basil)
  • 28 ounces crushed tomatoes (1 can)
  • 8 ounces tomato sauce
  • 2 bay leaves
  • cooking spray (or additional oil for zucchini)
  • 2 1/2 lbs. zucchini (4-5 medium sized zucchini)
  • 15 ounces part-skim ricotta
  • 1 egg
  • 1/8 tsp. nutmeg
  • 1/3 cup grated parmesan, divided
  • 2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella
  • 1 Tbsp. chopped parsley (optional, or can sprinkle with extra fresh basil instead)

Instructions

  • Heat oven to 400° F (205° C).
  • Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add onion and sauté for 4-5 minutes to soften. Add garlic and cook a minute longer.
  • Add ground turkey and cook, breaking into small pieces with a wooden spoon while cooking.
  • Season turkey with salt, pepper, oregano, and half of the basil (if using fresh basil, wait and add during last 10 minutes of sauce simmer time).
  • Pour crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce into turkey, add bay leaf, and bring to a low simmer. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • While sauce is simmering, cut ends off of each zucchini and use a mandolin slicer to slice zucchini into 1/8" thick slices.
  • Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Lay zucchini slices out in a single layer. Spray top side lightly with cooking spray and season lightly with salt and pepper. Place baking sheet in oven and roast for 15-20 minutes. When removing from oven, dab zucchini slices with a paper towel or clean kitchen towel if they appear watery.
  • While sauce simmers and zucchini bakes, mix ricotta, egg, half of parmesan, and nutmeg in a small bowl.
  • When sauce and zucchini slices are ready, remove bay leaves from sauce and ladle 1/3 of the sauce into the bottom of a 9x11" baking dish. Add layer of zucchini on top of sauce. Spread 1/2 of the ricotta mixture on top of zucchini slices. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella.
  • Repeat next layer with half of the remaining sauce, remaining ricotta, zucchini, and 1/2 cup of mozzarella. Top with remaining sauce, then mozzarella and parmesan.
  • Bake for 30 minutes until sauce is bubbling and cheese is melted. Let stand for about 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

*Will keep tightly covered in refrigerator for 4-5 days. 
 

Nutrition

Calories: 314kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 90mg | Sodium: 991mg | Potassium: 1055mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 1243IU | Vitamin C: 40mg | Calcium: 490mg | Iron: 3mg

did you make this recipe?

Make sure to follow on Pinterest @feastingnotfasting and on Instagram @feastingnotfasting

overhead picture of zucchini lasagna in a white dish

 

 

posted in: Main Dishes, Turkey, Vegetables

Previous
Oat Flour Waffles
Next
Curry Carrot Fries with Peanut Sauce

Reader Interactions

    Comments & Reviews

  1. Shelby says

    December 10, 2022

    5 stars
    We made this for dinner tonight and it turned out fantastic! Didn’t miss the noodles one but. Followed the recipe to a T and it was perfect.

    Reply
    • Christy says

      December 11, 2022

      So glad you liked it!

      Reply

Leave A Reply! Cancel reply

Share your thoughts!
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked with *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Christy - Author of Feasting Not Fasting.

Hi, Im Christy

The foodie, photographer and recipe developer behind Feasting Not Fasting, a site centered on making it easier to eat healthy.

More About Me
almond flour blueberry muffin on a plate with bite taken out

Simple healthy recipes straight to your inbox!

Subscribe for the newsletter for all the latest recipes delivered straight to you.

Sign up

Featured Recipes

  • overhead picture of Mediterranean eggplant salad in a white bowl
    Mediterranean Eggplant Salad
  • Close up picture of chicken taco seasoning blend in a white bowl
    Chicken Taco Seasoning
  • close up picture of kale salad on a white plate
    Lemon Kale Salad
  • Prosciutto Melon Skewers
  • These baked pears with honey and almonds are the perfect healthy dessert for the holidays with cranberries and a nutty crunch all for 200 calories!
    Baked Pears with Honey and Almonds
  • I'm in love with this beet smoothie! Its delicious, high in protein and has the perfect amount of sweetness to balance out the earthiness of the beets.
    Beet Smoothie with Strawberries and Kale
Allure Logo.
Boston Mag Logo.
Buzzfeed Logo.
Glamour Logo.
Healthline Logo.
The Huffington Post Logo.
MSN Logo.
sheknows Logo.
almond flour blueberry muffin on a plate with bite taken out

Simple healthy recipes straight to your inbox!

Feasting Not Fasting

About

  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact Us
  • Disclosure Policy
  • Collaboration

By Method

  • Air Fryer
  • Blender
  • Slow Cooker
  • Freezer
  • Instant Pot
  • Oven
  • Stovetop

By Diet

  • Dairy-Free
  • Gluten-Free
  • Keto
  • Low-Carb
  • Meal Prep
  • Paleo
  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian

By Course

  • Appetizers
  • Baked Goods
  • Breakfast
  • Dinner
  • Lunches
  • Main Dishes
  • Salads
  • Side Dishes
©2023, Feasting not Fasting. About Contact Privacy Policy Back To Top
Design by Pixel Me Designs
×

Simple healthy recipes straight to your inbox!

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
Save & Accept