A Zucchini Experiment

I explored a new use for our zucchini this week!  I don’t yet have my own garden, but I know many of you likely do and are being faced with a “more than you can handle” amount of zucchini.  Why not get creative (and healthy)?  I’m not going to sugar coat it (well, of course I wouldn’t…I’m a dietitian), the process completed to use my zucchini in this new dish was time consuming, but the results were spectacular!

Do you think zucchini is a vegetable or a fruit?  Zucchini, although eaten more often in savory dishes, is technically a fruit.  It grows from a golden flower (another edible piece of the plant, but less commonly used) and bears seeds.  There, a wrinkle for your brain.

This week I made what I have named Creamy Zucchini Lasagna.  A noodle-less lasagna full of veggies and flavor.  Zucchini has a very high water content (about 95%).  It is because of this fact that in order to use them as zucchini noodles, I had to get rid of some their moisture so that my lasagna did not become soup. 

I sliced 2 medium zucchini long ways into 1/4” thick noodles.  Then I sprinkled the zucchini with salt and set in a colander on top of paper towels (I did not add salt to the final recipe).  Any “how-to” instructions that I found recommended letting your zucchini set for 30 minutes.  We ran some errands while mine sweating, so they ended up sitting for a couple hours.  The salt creates a concentration gradient, causing the water to leach out of the zucchini.  I separated the zucchini slices and squeezed as much of their additional moisture out between paper towels.  Then I browned them lightly on both sides with a skillet heated to medium-high.

After much ado, I was ready to assemble my lasagna.  I had sautéed chopped onion, browned my 93% lean ground beef (all grease drained), and added no salt added tomato sauce, diced Roma tomatoes, Italian seasonings and a pinch of sugar to the meat mixture.  The cheese mixture I would layer my lasagna with was born out of necessity…some of the greatest creations are made this way.  I did not have ricotta, as lasagna usually calls for, so instead I used a mixture based loosely on a regular lasagna recipe and filled in with ingredients I had on hand.  My cheese layer was a mixture of fat free sour cream, fat free cream cheese, eggs, parmesan, and a few sliced olives.  I sprinkled a little 4 cheese Italian shredded cheese mix (reduced fat) between layers too.  The zucchini slices served as my noodles of course.  Meat, creamy mixture, zucchini, meat, creamy mixture, Italian cheese, zucchini, meat, creamy mixture, and Italian cheese to top it off all in a 9x13.  I baked my creation for 20 minutes at 375 degrees and broiled on high for 2-3 minutes to brown the top.

 

Hubby approved and SO flavorful.  Casserole style dishes always make me nervous when it comes to flavor, as I have experienced a few bland ones, but my Creamy Zucchini Lasagna did not disappoint.  After the preparation time and effort, it was very much worth it!  Not only did we have a delish meal, but we have enough for 1-2 more meals (one less weeknight to cook).  Keep this in mind if time and convenience is a challenge in your healthy eating efforts.  Cook once, eat twice.

The resulting serving of lasagna (6 or 8 servings per 9x13) provides about 250 or 350 calories, 25 or 34 grams of protein, and a whole bunch of phytonutrients from all the vegetables (onions, tomatoes, zucchini, olives).  I would serve with a piece of whole wheat toast.