Zucchini Lasagna

Since I’m always trying to watch my diet and Dave can pretty much eat anything he wants without gaining an ounce, I’m always looking for recipes that are healthy in disguise! Last night I tried this recipe for Zucchini Lasagna and it was YUM-tastic!! I would highly recommend it. I didn’t use the optional ingredients of spinach and mushrooms because they were at the very bottom of my recipe and I didn’t see them til it was out of the oven but I think I would throw them in next time. I’ve moved them up to the main list of ingredients so you don’t forget about them like I did. Seriously, try this. You won’t even notice there aren’t any noodles in it!!

ZUCCHINI LASAGNA, serves 10
Adapted from myrecipes.com
All you need:
4 cups water
6 cups zucchini (about 3 medium), sliced lengthwise in ¼-inch slices.
1 pound ground round or ground turkey
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups spaghetti sauce (we used Classico spicy red pepper)
½ teaspoon salt
½-1 teaspoon dried basil
½-1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cups fat-free cottage cheese or ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon dried parsley or 3 tablespoons fresh parsley
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
Cooking spray
½ cup dry breadcrumbs, divided
1¾ cups (3½ ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
(Optional: Use whole jar of sauce, add mushrooms and drained, frozen spinach to one layer.)

All you do:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Bring water to a boil. Slice zucchini lengthwise. Cook in boiling water 3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Don’t overcook! Dry on paper towels.
3. Place the beef and garlic in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until browned, stirring to crumble. Drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce, salt, basil, and oregano; cook for 1 minute.
4. Combine cottage or ricotta cheese, parsley, and eggs in a medium bowl.
5. Arrange ½ of the zucchini slices in a 9x13 pan coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle the zucchini with half of the breadcrumbs. Spread half of cottage cheese mixture over breadcrumbs; cover with half of the meat mixture and 1 cup mozzarella. Repeat layers, except mozzarella.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella, and bake an additional 5 minutes or until cheese melts.
Per serving: 210 calories, 7g fat, 15g carb, 554mg sodium, 21g protein, 2g fiber.