- April 26, 2024
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Cooking is a family thing, and I owe my culinary curiosity to my mom and grandma.
One thing my mom always taught me was to substitute ingredients with something that is lower in fat and fewer calories. If you don’t tell people, they won’t know.
As I kid I remember my mom switching out all the pasta she cooked for whole wheat pasta. After that, with the exception of my broke days in college, I only cooked whole wheat.
Along those lines, pasta can also be swapped out completely and replaced with squash to make a gluten-free, low-carb meal. To test the yummy factor in this theory, I invited a couple friends over when I cooked zucchini lasagna.
The recipe is basically just a simple lasagna recipe, with lean beef and part-skim cheeses but the lasagna noodles are replaced with thinly sliced zucchini. I was nice, and told my guests about the swap, but not until they were already seated at the table. The consensus was that the dish was delish.
With nine Weight Watchers Plus points per serving, even the non-dieting eater would go back for second helpings. My guests did.
Zucchini Lasagna
What you need:
1 poud 93% lean beef
3 cloves garlic
1/2 onion
1 teaspoon olive oil
salt and pepper
28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
3 medium zucchini, sliced 1/8-inch thick
15 ounce part-skim ricotta
16 ounce part-skin mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano
1 large egg
What to do:
In a medium sauce pan, brown meat and season with salt. When cooked, drain in colander.
Add olive oil to the pan and sauté garlic and onions about 2 minutes. Return the meat to the pan, add tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper. Simmer on low for at least 30-40 minutes, covered.
Meanwhile, slice zucchini into 1/8-inch thick slices, salt lightly 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.
On a grill pan, grill zucchini on each side, until cooked, about 1-2 minutes per side. Place on paper towels to soak any excess moisture.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium bowl, mix ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and egg. Stir well.
In a 9-by-12-inch casserole, spread some sauce on the bottom and layer the zucchini to cover. Place some of the ricotta cheese mixture, then top with the mozzarella cheese and repeat the process until all your ingredients are used up, ending with sauce and mozzarella. Cover with foil.
Bake 45 minutes covered, then uncovered 15 minutes. Let stand 5-10 minutes before serving.
-Adapted from Skinnytaste.com
