Pair this delicious recipe with your favorite fall dessert to complete the perfect meal for your family!
I love making a warm and cozy family dinner recipe during the fall when it starts to get cold outside, something that is not only delicious but makes for great leftovers! There are so many yummy fall soup recipes I love to make, even fall salad recipes that incorporate delicious seasonal fall fruits and vegetables like persimmons and butternut squash, but one of my favorite family dinner recipes for the fall is a lasagna!
I love making a lasagna! They’re perfect to make for friends or family when hosting or dropping off a meal! It’s a labor of love and takes a little time, but it’s truly not hard to make. I make my own meat sauce that is full of flavor and while I usually use lasagna noodles, I am going to share how to make a Zucchini Lasagna that is gluten-free and perfect if you’re following a keto diet! Pair this with your favorite fall dessert recipes to complete the meal for your family!
Zucchini Lasagna
Step by step instructions for my favorite Fall Family Dinner Recipe: Zucchini Lasagna
2
servings10
minutes30
minutesIngredients
- 6-8
large zucchini
- 1 lb
mild, sweet or hot Italian sausage
- 1 lb
lean ground beef
- 1/2 cup
yellow onion, chopped
- 6 cloves
garlic, crushed
- 1 28oz
can crushed tomatoes
- 2 6oz
cans tomato paste
- 1/4 cup
fresh parsley, chopped & divided
- 2 tbsp
Italian seasoning
- 2 tsp.
oregano
- 2 tsp.
salt
- 1 tsp.
pepper
- 16 oz
whole ricotta
- 1
egg
fresh chopped parsley
- 1 lb
shredded mozzarella
- 1 cup
grated parmesan cheese
Directions
PREPPING THE ZUCCHINI: Using a knife, carefully cut the ends of both sides of the zucchini and then slice one slide of the zucchini lengthwise, approx. ¼” thick. For the next step you can continue to use a knife, but I highly recommend using a mandolin to create perfect, symmetrical ¼” slices.
Using a mandolin (or a knife), VERY CAREFULLY slice ¼” lengthwise slices of zucchini. Repeat this step until all of the zucchini are sliced.
Lay out paper towels on the counter and place sliced zucchini in a single layer. Generously salt both sides of the zucchini for a minimum of 15 mins (or longer) and you will see the zucchini start to “sweat” out all the water. Using clean paper towels, pat sliced zucchini dry. This will also remove the excess salt, so don’t worry about it being too salty. Set aside zucchini slices until ready to assemble.
TO MAKE THE MEAT SAUCE: Brown sausage, ground beef, onions and garlic in a large pot over medium high heat until browned.
Add in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, Italian seasoning, oregano, salt & pepper and half of the parsley. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30-60 mins, the longer, the better.
In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese, egg and remaining half of parsley and 1 tsp. salt. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350°.
TO ASSEMBLE: Add 1/5 cup of meat sauce to bottom of pan (13” x 9”), add a layer of sliced zucchini to cover the entire bottom of the pan. Add ½ of the ricotta mixture and spread to cover the zucchini slices. Top with a third of the meat sauce, sprinkle with parmesan cheese and top with ¾ c. mozzarella cheese. Then repeat steps. And to finish, add a final layer of zucchini slices, top with remaining meat sauce and cheeses.
Cover with foil and bake for 30 mins at 350°, remove foil and bake for another 20-30 minutes until zucchini is soft. Let rest for 15 minutes before eating
NOTE: I make my regular lasagna the exact same way, just swap out the zucchini slices for regular lasagna noodles!
Enjoy my favorite keto-friendly Fall Family Dinner recipe!
If you enjoyed this recipe then you might enjoy my other Shrimp Scampi recipe.
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