No Noodle Zucchini Lasagna Recipe 415

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Bring water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add zucchini; cook 3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and cool. Or you may grill or saute the zucchini if you wish.
• Place the ground beef(or turkey or crumbles) and garlic in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until browned, stirring to break up meat. Stir in the spaghetti sauce, salt, basil, and oregano; cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat.
• Combine the cottage cheese, parsley, and eggs in a medium bowl.
• Arrange zucchini slices in a shallow 3-quart casserole coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle the zucchini with half of the breadcrumbs. Spread half of cottage cheese mixture over breadcrumbs; cover with half of the meat mixture and 1 cup mozzarella. Repeat the layers with the remaining breadcrumbs, cottage cheese mixture, and meat mixture; reserve the remaining mozzarella. Bake at 350°F for 40 minutes.
• Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella, and bake an additional 5 minutes or until cheese melts.

Steps:

• Heat a large, deep nonstick skillet over high heat. Add the meat, season with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, and cook, using a wooden spoon to break the meat into small pieces as it browns, 4 to 5 minutes. Drain the meat in a colander and wipe the skillet with a paper towel.
• Put the skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil and onion and cook, stirring, until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute. Return the meat to the pan, add the tomatoes, basil, 1/4 teaspoon of the salt, and the black pepper to taste. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 25 minutes. Remove the lid and simmer uncovered 10 minutes, until thickened.
• Meanwhile, slice the zucchini lengthwise with a mandolin into 1/8-inch-thick slices (you should have at least 30 to 35 long zucchini ribbons). Lightly salt the zucchini with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and set aside for 15 minutes. Blot the zucchini with paper towels.
• Preheat a grill to medium heat (or preheat a grill pan over medium heat).
• Oil the grill grates or spray the grill pan with cooking spray to avoid sticking. Grill the zucchini until cooked and slightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels and press to absorb excess moisture.
• Preheat the oven to 375°F.
• In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, and egg. Spread 1/2 cup of the meat sauce in the bottom of a 9 × 13 × 2 1/2- inch baking dish. Make a layer of the zucchini over the sauce to cover the bottom of the dish. Spread 1/2 cup of the ricotta mixture over the zucchini and sprinkle with 1 cup of the mozzarella. Make another layer of zucchini, top with 1 1/2 cups meat sauce, 1/2 cup ricotta mixture, 1 cup mozzarella. Repeat the layers with the remaining ingredients for a total of 3 layers. Finish the lasagna by topping with the remaining zucchini and meat sauce. Cover the dish with foil.
• Bake for 30 minutes, remove the foil, and bake 20 minutes uncovered. Add the remaining 1 cup mozzarella and bake uncovered until bubbling and the cheese is melted, 10 more minutes. Let stand for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting into 8 pieces.