Zucchini Lasagna
Published on July 30, 2025
Quick Summary
This Zucchini Lasagna skips the noodles and layers thinly sliced, roasted zucchini with a hearty meat sauce, creamy ricotta, and plenty of melted cheese. It’s a low-carb, high-protein twist on classic lasagna that’s perfect for using up summer zucchini—delicious, filling, and totally satisfying.
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Pin ItZucchini Lasagna (No Noodles & High Protein)
As soon as zucchini season rolls around, I find myself looking for every excuse to incorporate this versatile veggie into our meals—because honestly, I can only make so many loaves of zucchini bread. From soup to fritters, it finds its way into just about everything, but this Zucchini Lasagna is one of my absolute favorite ways to use it.
It’s everything you love about classic lasagna, lots of layers of hearty sauce and melty cheese, but without the pasta. Instead, thinly sliced zucchini steps in as the “noodle,” keeping things light and fresh.
This recipe is also protein-packed, thanks to a hearty ground turkey marinara (you can easily swap in ground beef), and a generous layer of ricotta cheese, mozzarella, and parmesan. The result is a comforting, satisfying dish that tastes indulgent but is packed with protein and veggies.
One of the secrets to perfect zucchini lasagna is roasting the zucchini slices first. This removes excess moisture and prevents the dreaded watery lasagna situation. It’s a small extra step that makes a big difference.
I love serving this dish with an easy green salad and some crusty garlic bread. It’s a great recipe for meal prep, family dinners, or when you’re just trying to make the most of that overflowing garden zucchini.
Ingredients (with Helpful Notes)
- Zucchini: Use medium zucchini. Large or overgrown zucchini tend to hold a lot more water, which can lead to a soggy lasagna—even if you roast the slices first. They also have large, tough seeds. Save those big zucchinis for baking!
- Onion: Cook the onion in a little olive oil. The best start to the sauce!
- Ground turkey: Lean and protein-rich; you can substitute with ground beef.
- Garlic, Italian seasoning, and crushed red pepper flakes: To give the meat sauce extra flavor.
- Marinara sauce: Use your favorite jarred or homemade sauce.
- Ricotta cheese: Whole milk ricotta gives the creamiest texture. Cottage cheese will also work.
- Egg: Helps bind the ricotta mixture and gives it an extra rich flavor.
- Mozzarella cheese: I recommend buying a block of mozzarella cheese and shredding it. Pre-shredded cheese is often coated with anti-caking agents, and it doesn’t melt as well.
- Parmesan cheese: Salty, nutty, and so good!
- Basil: Fresh basil adds great flavor to the cheese mixture. I also like to top the lasagna with basil leaves when it comes out of the oven. The perfect finishing touch!
Tips for Making Zucchini Lasagna
- Thinly slice the zucchini. Use a sharp knife or mandoline to slice the zucchini. Uniform slices cook more evenly and layer better in the pan.
- Salt and roast the zucchini. This helps remove excess moisture so your lasagna isn’t watery. I promise, it is worth the extra effort and it really doesn’t take long.
- Blot zucchini after roasting. Even after roasting, pat the slices with paper towels to absorb any remaining moisture.
- Don’t skip the cheese mixture. Mixing the ricotta with an egg makes it creamy and helps it set up nicely during baking.
- Layer strategically. Start with a thin layer of sauce on the bottom to prevent sticking, then layer with zucchini, ricotta mixture, sauce, and cheese.
- Cover with foil. Covering loosely with foil for the first half prevents over-browning, but uncover at the end to get a bubbly, golden cheese top.
- Let the lasagna rest before serving. After baking, let the lasagna sit for 10–15 minutes to firm up. This makes slicing easier and keeps the layers intact.
Zucchini Lasagna
Ingredients
- 4 medium zucchini, sliced about ¼ inch thick
- Kosher salt, for sprinkling on zucchini
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced
- 1 pound ground turkey, or ground beef
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 25 ounces marinara sauce, can use jarred sauce
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, divided
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon chopped basil
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- Garnish: Fresh basil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Grease a 9×13-inch baking dish and set aside.
- Place the zucchini slices on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Lightly salt and let sit for 5 to 10 minutes to allow excess moisture to release. Pat the zucchini dry with paper towels.
- Place the pan in the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and blot the zucchini again to absorb additional moisture. Reduce the oven temperature to 375°F.
- While the zucchini is baking, make the sauce. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onion and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the ground turkey and cook, stirring and breaking apart the turkey with a wooden spoon, until browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the Italian seasoning, salt, and crushed pepper flakes.
- Pour in the sauce and stir to combine.
- In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, egg, basil, and pepper.
- Spread ½ cup of the sauce on the bottom of the greased baking dish. Top with a layer of zucchini slices. It’s ok if they overlap a little bit.
- Layer half of the sauce over the zucchini.
- Spread half of the ricotta mixture evenly on top. Sprinkle with ½ cup of mozzarella cheese.
- Repeat layers again: zucchini, sauce, ricotta mixture, and finish with the remaining 1 cup mozzarella cheese and ¼ cup Parmesan cheese.
- Cover pan with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and zucchini is tender. Let the lasagna cool for 10 to 15 minutes to set up. Garnish with fresh basil. Serve.
Notes
- Refrigerate: Let cool completely. Cover tightly and keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Reheat in the oven or microwave until warmed through.
- Freeze: Lasagna can be frozen baked or unbaked. Make sure zucchini is well roasted to reduce moisture. Freeze in a freezer container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before baking or reheating.
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?
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Hello, this recipe looks absolutely delicious and zucchini is my favorite vegetable. However, I do have 2 questions. Firstly, can I make the recipe with homemade ricotta? Secondly, can I use only parmesan and no mozzarella? Than you.
Yes, you can use homemade ricotta. I haven’t tried it with just mozzarella and parmesan. You can use cottage cheese instead of ricotta.