Kid Friendly Healthy ~ Zucchini Lasagna Recipe

It’s always been a challenge to get my son to eat his vegetables! There are a few he’ll eat, but others his eyes decide he doesn’t like before he even gets to taste them! He does love pasta dishes like spaghetti, macaroni and cheese, and lasagna.

One of my favorite recipes to swap out that pasta with veggies is zucchini lasagna. I just made it the other night for my family. While it’s not as big of a hit as regular lasagna, it does pass their judgement, and it’s a great way to get my son to eat some vegetables.

Zucchini Lasagna Recipe

Ingredients:

• 3-4 small to medium zucchini-sliced thing length wise
• 30 oz can of tomato sauce
• 1 container cottage cheese or ricotta cheese
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1- 8 oz container button mushrooms-sliced
• 1/2 medium onion diced
• 1-2 cloves garlic -minced
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon basil

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350`F.

2. Brown the ground beef, and drain.

3. Toss in the garlic, onions and mushrooms. Toss them with the ground beef.

4. Add the oregano, basil, and tomato sauce and simmer for about 15 to 20 minutes.

5. In a casserole dish add in layers the meat sauce, zucchini, cottage or ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese. Repeat the layers 2-3 times.

6. Top with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.

7. Bake at 350`F for about 50 minutes to one hour.

Give this recipe a try with your own family, and let me know how it goes! It’s a new twist on a family favorite, so kids may be more willing to give it a try. This recipe works just as well with yellow squash, or a mix of yellow squash and zucchini if you prefer. I’ve also used lean ground turkey instead of ground beef in this recipe.

Since this recipe doesn’t include pasta it doesn’t soak up as much moisture as regular lasagna. Simmering the sauce down can help to keep the zucchini lasagna from having too much liquid when it’s done baking.

Enjoy!

This recipe is part of a weekly food challenge. This week’s ingredient was squash. You can check out more great recipes below.