Enjoying the Simple Things: Zucchini Lasagna

A co-worker brought a bunch of Zucchini to share so I grabbed a couple and thought I'd try some Zucchini Lasagna.

I've never made lasagna before so I went searching for a recipe and came across this one....

Zucchini Lasagna (w/ dairy)

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups zucchini, sliced 1/4 inch thick ( about 2 medium)

1/2 lb lean ground beef ( I use 1 lb.)

1/4 cup onions, chopped

2 small tomatoes, cut up

1 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste

1 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

1/4 cup water

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 eggs

3/4 cup low fat cottage cheese ( or low fat or fat free ricotta)

1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded ( I use 8 oz. divided)

1 teaspoon flour

Directions

1. Cook zucchini until tender, drain and set aside. Fry meat and onions until meat is brown and onions are tender; drain fat. Add next 8 ingredients and bring to a boil.

2. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered 10 minutes or until reduced to 2 cups

3. In small bowl slightly beat egg

4. Add cottage cheese, half of shredded cheese and flour.

5. In (1 1/2-qt.) baking-roasting pan arrange half of the meat mixture. Top with half of the zucchini and all the cottage cheese mixture. Top with remaining meat and zucchini

6. Bake uncovered at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes

7. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 10 minutes longer.

8. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

And here's how I changed it up a little to be lactose free and fewer steps. I made the lasagna in a pie dish because its all I could find. My local Save Mart now carries a Cottage Cheese that is lactose-free. I love all the new products that are coming out Lactose Free!!

Zucchini Lasagna (lactose free)

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups zucchini, pealed

1/2 lb lean ground beef ( I used 1 lb.)

1/4 cup onions, chopped

1 jar of marinara sauce

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 eggs

3/4 cup lactose-free cottage cheese

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded

1 teaspoon flour

Here's what to do:

1. Cook the meat and onions until meat is brown and onions are tender; drain fat. Add the marinara sauce and bring to a boil.

2. Reduce heat; simmer or until reduced
3. Peel the zucchini into strips (I used a vegetable peeler. The smaller the zucchini the better)

4. In small bowl slightly beat egg

5. Add cottage cheese, half of shredded cheese and flour.

6. In (1 1/2-qt. or any dish you have) baking-roasting pan arrange a layer of each of the following; zucchini strips, meat mixture, zucchini strips, cottage cheese mixture, meat mixture, zucchini mixture and top off with a layer of parmesan cheese.