With the growing number of people trying to reduce or eliminate carbohydrates from their diets, we are seeing a proliferation of new low-carb recipes. If you don't want to give up this delight of the Italian culinary tradition, learn to replace the strips of pasta with strips of zucchini. Grilled zucchini is a sugar and carbohydrate-free pasta substitute, and tastes great. Even if you decide to add beef or turkey to your lasagna, your daily vegetable intake will increase.
Ingrediants
- 2 large courgettes
- 1 tablespoon of sea salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons of ground black pepper
- 1 small green pepper, diced
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 cans of tomato sauce or pulp
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh basil
- 1 tablespoon of chopped fresh oregano
- 1 beaten egg
- 450 g of fresh ricotta
- 240 g of Mozzarella
- 240 g of grated Parmesan cheese
Steps
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 170ºC
Meanwhile, lightly grease a 22 x 28 cm baking dish.
Step 2. Wash the courgettes, remove the ends and cut them vertically into long thin slices
Be cautious as the slippery surface of the zucchini can cause the knife to slip. Cut them on a solid, stationary surface. Season them on both sides with freshly ground salt and pepper. Arrange the seasoned courgette slices on a clean plate.
Step 3. Heat a large skillet on the stove, using medium-high heat
Cover the bottom with the extra virgin olive oil and let it heat for a couple of minutes.
Step 4. Arrange the courgettes in the pan, without overlapping them
Cook them on both sides until they are evenly grilled. Transfer the evenly grilled courgette slices to the clean plate.
Step 5. Prepare the tomato sauce
Take a large pot and cover the bottom with extra virgin olive oil. Add the minced garlic and diced onion and pepper. Fry the ingredients using medium-high heat.
- Add the tomato sauce and heat it using a medium heat, then simmer the ingredients for about 5 minutes.
- Add the oregano and basil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Reduce the heat, cover the pot and cook for an hour.
Step 6. Mix the egg with the ricotta in a bowl
Step 7. Remove the ready sauce from the heat and let it cool for about half an hour
Transfer the sauce to a blender and blend until smooth and velvety.
Step 8. Assemble the lasagna as usual
- Pour some gravy into the bottom of the previously greased pan. Arrange a layer of grilled zucchini, cover them with the ricotta and egg mixture and add part of the mozzarella.
- Repeat the previous step alternating sauce, zucchini, ricotta and mozzarella.
- Sprinkle the last layer with grated Parmesan. Cover the dish with aluminum foil.
Step 9. Cook the covered lasagna in the oven for 45 minutes
Place the dish on a baking sheet to prevent any cooking juices from escaping from the dish and dirtying the oven.
Step 10. After the first 45 minutes of cooking, remove the aluminum foil
Increase the oven temperature to 180ºC and continue cooking for another 15 minutes.
Step 11. Before serving the lasagna, let it rest for 5 minutes
Step 12. Enjoy your meal
Advice
- Add other vegetables to increase your daily consumption. You can incorporate them into the sauce or layers of lasagna, placing them between the ricotta and mozzarella. Experiment with adding spinach or grilled eggplant, for example.
- To delight the palates of the most carnivorous, add 450 g of minced meat to the sauce. Brown it in a pan, then add it to the cooking sauce.
Warnings
- Avoid the sauce coming into contact with the aluminum foil, especially when storing in the refrigerator. The acidity of the tomato could erode the aluminum causing it to be transferred into food.
- If you want to add meat to your recipe, brown it in a pan before incorporating it into the sauce to ensure complete and even cooking.
