This ground beef zucchini lasagna recipe is comfort food made healthy and more nutritious. I added more plants to the meat sauce and used layers of both zucchini and noodles.
Winter can be a tempting time to indulge in dishes that aren’t the most nutritious. Or as many people call them…comfort foods.
But I have some good news. I’ve partnered with Have a Plant to create a comfort food recipe that is nutritious, tastes great, and packs in a lot of veggies – a Healthy Ground Beef Zucchini Lasagna.
Let me remind you, eating healthy doesn’t have to be rigid. If you love lasagna, you should eat lasagna. It’s all about finding simple additions or swaps to the dish to make it more nutritious without sacrificing the taste. And of course, everything in moderation!
Listen to your body and honor your taste buds by enjoying foods that make you feel good — like fruits and veggies.
An additional swap I made with this recipe was to substitute some of the noodles for sliced zucchini. This is a fantastic and clever way to add more veggies to your day.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium red onion diced
- 1 tablespoon crushed garlic
- 1.5 pounds 93% lean ground beef
- 1 tablespoon dry oregano
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 14.5 ounce can diced, no salt added tomatoes
- 1 14.5 ounce can tomato sauce, no salt added
- 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
- 1 cup of basil leaves sliced
- 1/2 cup 2% milk
- 1 bag 10 ounces sliced Baby Bella mushrooms
- 1 medium red bell pepper chunks
- 6 ounces tricolor baby carrots cut into chunks
- 2 12- inch celery sticks diced
- 1 box oven ready lasagna noodle
- 4 8- inch zucchini’s cut into ¼ inch slices
- 5 cup part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese divided
- 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Heat up the oil in a large deep skillet. Saute the onion and garlic for about minutes.
- Add the ground beef and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the oregano and salt and pepper to taste.
- Add all the canned tomato products and basil and cook for another 5-7 minutes.
- In the meantime blend the milk, mushrooms, bell pepper, and celery in a blender.
- Add the veggie blend mixture to the skillet and mix well. Cook for another 10 min.
- Cover the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish with tomato sauce.
- Lay the lasagna noodle slices in the dish, followed by the meat veggie sauce.
- Add on top two cups of mozzarella.
- Lay zucchini slices in the dish, followed by the meat veggie sauce.
- Add on top two cups of mozzarella.
- Lay the lasagna noodle slices on top.
- Add 1 cup mozzarella and the parmesan cheese on top .
- Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 45 min.
- Uncover and put back to bake for another 15 min.
Lasagna is a great addition to your weekly meal rotation with lean protein, carbohydrates, vegetables, dairy, and healthy fats. Make it once and enjoy it throughout the week. You can eleven freeze it for a simple meal weeks from now.
Whether it’s small moments or life-changing ones, celebrate by adding veggies to your favorite feel-good foods!
