You know you’re having a hectic day when your desk ends up looking like this:

It felt like one thing after another needed my immediate attention today and my desk just piled up before I knew it!

I relieved some of the day’s stresses with a 45 minute run along the deserted path right by our apartment. The only other beings out there with me were the geese. Is anyone else afraid of those things when they’re nesting? They can be vicious!

On to something delicious…

Zucchini Lasagna with Ground Turkey

This dish was part of the Mile A Day Melt Away meal plan a couple weeks ago and it was so tasty I wanted to share it with you all. It provides a low-carb option for dinner and easily saves as leftovers. This lasagna is a bit labor intensive, but you could easily make the sauce ahead to cut down on the time.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 3 cups tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons basil
• 3 medium zucchini, sliced 1/8″ thick
• 2 cups, or 16 ounces, low-fat ricotta
• 2 cups, or 16 ounces, low-fat mozzarella, shredded
• 1/4 cup parmesan
• 1 large egg
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Slice zucchini into strips and lay out on a paper towel.

2. Sprinkle salt over zucchini slices and let them sit about 20 minutes. This helps eliminate some of the moisture out of the zucchini.

3. You will see them start to “sweat” (because this is a fitness blog after all). When you’re ready to start layering, dry as much moisture out of them as you can with a paper towel.

4. While the zucchini is working out, brown the ground turkey in a large skillet over medium heat.

5. Add the onion, garlic, basil, salt & pepper, and sauce to the skillet.

6. Let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes.

7. Combine ricotta, parmesan, 12 ounces mozzarella, and egg in a bowl and mix.

8. Arrange zucchini slices into the base of a 9×13 baking dish. (They are not beautiful because of pressing them with the paper towel to dry.)

9. Layer with half of meat sauce and cheese mixture.

10. Repeat layering and top with final layer of zucchini slices and a sprinkle of mozzarella.

11. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 15 minutes. Makes 8-10 servings.

This lasagna tends to come out a bit soupy. You can drain it after it stands 5 minutes, or just embrace the liquid flavor.

I have to say I am very blessed to have a husband who doesn’t roll his eyes at me when I go on culinary kitchen adventures. There may be a raised eyebrow or two (hello spaghetti squash noodles), but he has gone back for seconds on just about everything! Thank you, Rob, for being such a polite taste tester!

RQ: Have you ever made anything like this? Are you a fan of low-carb/veggie replacement options? Who is your taste tester? 

Brooke Selb

I’m Brooke Selb, a Personal Trainer and Health Coach specializing in helping busy moms and moms to be to easily juggle mom life with family friendly recipes, and easy exercise routines to help you achieve your fitness goals that fit in with your already busy life with sound nutritional advice.