Lasagna Stuffed Zucchini Boats are a low-carb, gluten-free way to get your lasagna fix. Layers of rich tomato meat sauce and gooey cheese fill grilled zucchini. If you’re like me, lasagna is all about the sauce and the cheese. Zucchini boats are the perfect vessel for holding them plus zucchini adds lots of good flavor, not to mention nutrition.
Zucchini Lasagna Boats Recipe Tips:
The cooking time will vary a good bit based on the size of your zucchini. Mine weren’t very large. I’ve grilled them first to give them a head start on cooking and to enhance their flavor but you could skip this step and add a good 15-20 minutes to the cooking time.
I’ve used cottage cheese because I love how creamy it is, but you could use ricotta instead.
For a different flavor, use Italian sausage instead of ground beef.
You will probably have some extra sauce. Just spoon it into a ziptop bag, refrigerate and you have lunch for the next day halfway made.
This meal could easily be made vegetarian by omitting the ground beef and using sautéed vegetables instead.
Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 days.
To make this dish spicy, add 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes to the sauce.
Try One Of These Other Zucchini Recipes:
- Jalapeno Popper Zucchini Boats
- Japanese Zucchini
- Fried Zucchini Chips
- Zucchini Lasagna– another low carb favorite!
- Zucchini Moussaka
Lasagna Zucchini Boats
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 small onion,, diced
- 1/2 green pepper,, diced
- 1 clove garlic,, minced
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil,, divided
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 (14-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 3/4 teaspoon salt,, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper,, divided
- 4 zucchini,, the wider the better
- Olive oil
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 1 egg,, lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella,, divided
- 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan,, divided
Instructions
- Place a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and add ground beef, onion, and green pepper. Saute until most of the pink in the ground beef is gone, breaking beef up with a wooden spoon as it cooks.
- Add I cube each of garlic, basil, and parsley. Stir for 30 seconds to help melt the cubes and mix everything together.
- Add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and tomato paste plus 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
- Let simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated and sauce is nice and thick, about 10 minutes. Check for seasoning and add additional salt and pepper if desired.
- Trim about a 1/4-inch off the end of each zucchini. Cut zucchini in half lengthwise. Using a spoon, scoop out seeds and as much zucchini flesh as you can without making the zucchini shell too weak. Discard what was scooped out.
- Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat and drizzle with olive oil. Place zucchini on pan cut side down. Turn heat down to medium and grill zucchini (just on that 1 side) for about 5-6 minutes. Take a few peaks at underside of zucchini while cooking to make sure heat is not too high.
- Remove zucchini from grill pan and sprinkle insides of zucchini with salt and pepper.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a medium bowl mix together cottage cheese, egg, and half of mozzarella and half of Parmesan. Add I Dorot basil cube. Use back of spoon to break it up if still frozen and mix it into cheese mixture.
- Place zucchini cut side up in large baking dish. Spread a little sauce mixture in the bottom of each. Top with cheese mixture and another layer of sauce.
- Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle remaining cheese on top and bake for 5 more minutes.
Notes
Ricotta cheese may be substituted for cottage cheese.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Originally published Nov 10, 2013
These look delicious! A lighter way to enjoy the flavors of lasagna.
Thanks Amy! Trying to lighten a few things up a bit as we go into the holiday season!
Looks delicious!
Love these lasagna boats!
And those are a cool product indeed!
Thanks Shashi! It’s so much fun discovering new things to use in the kitchen isn’t it?
Love the sound of these zucchini lasagna boats – our favorite part of lasagna is the cheese and sauce too so this lighter veggie based version is fantastic! I enjoy using lots of herbs in our meals too and these cubes sound so convenient 🙂
The cubes really are convenient Kelly! And sometimes I think I could eat a bowl of just cheese and sauce 🙂
You have great timing! I was just thinking about making some sort of stuffed zucchini for dinner this week! I think these may need to make an appearance! They look delicious!
Thanks Ashley! Great minds think alike 😉
I’m in desperate need of a little healthiness in my life, these look like they’d fit the bill without losing all that yummy lasagna flavor. Love!
I’m in need of a little healthiness in my life too Nicole! And these are definitely healthy compared to regular lasagna!
I love low carb meals especially when there is a lot of meat! I always see theses cubes in the grocery store and never think to pick them up, they are cheaper then fresh herbs! I am going to defiantly pick up some..
First off, I love the sound of your lasagna boats because I’m all about the sauce and cheese when it comes to lasagna, too. The fact that I love zucchini makes this better than lasagna with pasta! Second, the Dorot products look fantastic, and I will have to find those. I waste way too many herbs!
You will love the Dorot products Marcie! They are so fresh and easy to use!
Those little cubes look amazing, why can’t we have them in Spain uuugh???
And these lasagna boats, they look so cheesy and delicious. I wish they were my dinner today 😉
Loving this lighter take on lasagna! I love stuffing zucchini. 🙂