Slow Cooker Zucchini Lasagna

Sooo simple, CRAZY comforting & super YUM throughout these colder months!

The PERFECT weeknight comfort food.

I use my crockpot year-round because I find it SO convenient to throw a few ingredients together in the morning when I’m full of energy, then we have a meal ready-to-eat whenever we’re ready for it later in the day…no matter what the day happens to throw at me.

Did you know:

Zucchini has quite an impressive nutritional scoreboard – from high levels of potassium, B-vitamins, dietary fiber, and antioxidants, all which offer huge benefits to our overall health.

It’s shown that eating zucchini regularly in place of processed carbohydrates (such as pasta) can even help regulate our blood sugar levels, which can greatly benefit diabetics.

Eating zucchini several times per week can help us with our weight loss goals.

Zucchini is extremely low in calories, but gives us the feeling of being full. Therefore, it is a great way to satisfy our appetites without grabbing lots of empty calories or carbs.

  Rachel’s Tips:

Use a mandolin to easily slice your zucchini evenly into full length slices as shown.

Use YOUR favorite marinara sauce, because that’s where this dish gets a lot of its flavors!

When shopping for store bought sauce:

I like to make sure the marinara has no added sugar. Tomatoes naturally contain sugar, but there shouldn’t be added sugar on the ingredients list.

Marinara sauce should contain just a few simple ingredients such as tomatoes, garlic and herbs.

Makes 6-8 servings

Ingredients:

• 12 oz part-skim ricotta, or cottage cheese drained of excess moisture
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 cups packed baby spinach, chopped
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp each, sea salt & pepper, or to taste
• olive oil to lightly coat slow cooker
• 1 – 15 oz jar marinara sauce, or homemade tomato sauce
• 4 medium zucchini, sliced 1/8″ thick
• 8 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 Tbsps parsley, chopped to garnish

Instructions:

Sprinkle zucchini slices with a tiny bit of salt, then set aside on paper towels.

In a medium bowl, stir together ricotta cheese, egg, Parmesan cheese, chopped spinach, garlic and onion powder. Stir really well to combine everything.

Lightly coat the inside of your crockpot with olive oil, then spread a couple of spoonfuls of tomato sauce onto the bottom.

Gently pat your zucchini slices dry with paper towels. This step helps prevent watery lasagna.

Layer your zucchini slices to cover the bottom.

Spread over 2 spoonfuls of ricotta mixture over those zucchini, then sprinkle a small handful of shredded mozzarella.

Repeat these layers until you’ve used all of your ingredients, then finish with a layer of shredded mozzarella on top.

Cover and cook on HIGH for about 4 hours.

Turn off the slow cooker and let stand for about 1 hour.

Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley and enjoy!

Rachel

Slow Cooker Zucchini Lasagna

Category: Dinner, Recipes

Author: Rachel Maser - CleanFoodCrush

Servings:  6-8

Ingredients

• 12 oz part-skim ricotta, or cottage cheese drained of excess moisture
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 cups packed baby spinach, chopped
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp each, sea salt & pepper, or to taste
• olive oil to lightly coat slow cooker
• 1 - 15 oz jar marinara sauce, or homemade tomato sauce
• 4 medium zucchini, sliced 1/8″ thick
• 8 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 Tbsps parsley, chopped to garnish

Instructions

1. Sprinkle zucchini slices with a tiny bit of salt, then set aside on paper towels.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together ricotta cheese, egg, Parmesan cheese, chopped spinach, garlic and onion powder. Stir really well to combine everything.
3. Lightly coat the inside of your crockpot with olive oil, then spread a couple of spoonfuls of tomato sauce onto the bottom.
4. Gently pat your zucchini slices dry with paper towels. This step helps prevent watery lasagna.
5. Layer your zucchini slices to cover the bottom.
6. Spread over 2 spoonfuls of ricotta mixture over those zucchini, then sprinkle a small handful of shredded mozzarella.
7. Repeat these layers until you've used all of your ingredients, then finish with a layer of shredded mozzarella on top.
8. Cover and cook on HIGH for about 4 hours.
9. Turn off the slow cooker and let stand for about 1 hour.
10. Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley and enjoy!

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https://cleanfoodcrush.com/slow-cooker-zucchini-lasagna/

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