Replacing the pasta with zucchini in this Skillet Zucchini Lasagna recipe makes a delicious, easy-to-assemble, gluten-free dish for family meals.

zucchini lasagna recipe collage pin with text

One of the things I love most about summer, along with garden flowers, is the great selection of fresh fruit and vegetables. Going to our farmers market is truly a delight. Here in the Midwest, it’s zucchini season, so I figured it was the perfect time to whip up some zucchini lasagna.

What Is Zucchini Lasagna

Zucchini lasagna is the same as traditional lasagna, except the pasta is replaced with long slices of zucchini. The bigger the zucchini, the bigger the slices! This can be a vegetarian dish by eliminating the meat in the pasta sauce. It can also be gluten-free as long as the pasta sauce is gluten-free.

Ingredient Notes

Any kind of pasta sauce can be used. Store-bought, homemade, whatever you have on hand. I recently discovered Rao’s Vodka Sauce, and it’s delicious!
Any kind of easy-to-slice squash can be used for this lasagna, as well as eggplant.
The amounts for the various kinds of cheese in the recipe card are simply guidelines. Use whatever kind of cheese you like, and whatever amount.
If you don’t have fresh basil, fresh parsley or cilantro can be used. Dried basil would also be very good.

How To Make

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Slice zucchini the long way, about 1/8 inch thick.
Place zucchini slices on paper towel. Sprinkle liberally with salt. Cover with more paper towel. Let sit for 10 minutes.
While zucchini is draining, prepare sauce.
If you are using meat, brown it in a saucepan and drain. If not, go to the next step.
Combine meat (if using,) pasta sauce, garlic powder, and chopped basil. Stir to combine. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine ricotta cheese, egg, and parmesan cheese.
Lightly coat a 12 inch heavy skillet with olive oil.
Spread half of the pasta sauce/meat mixture on bottom of skillet.
Add zucchini slices in one layer.
Spread half the ricotta mixture over the zucchini.
Top ricotta with half the mozzarella.
Repeat the layering steps: sauce/meat, zucchini, ricotta mixture, mozzarella.
Bake covered for 25 minutes.
Remove cover and bake 10 minutes more. Cheese should be lightly browned and edges should be bubbly.
Remove from oven and let sit 10 to 15 minutes.
Slice and serve.

Helpful Tips

If you don’t have a cast iron skillet, any baking pan can be used.
The measurements listed in the recipe card are guidelines. Just adjust the ingredient amounts to the size of your pan.
I sliced my zucchini with a large knife. It’s a little tricky to slice the zucchini the long way, so take your time and watch your fingers! If you have a mandoline slicer, that would work as well.
Reader tip #1: an OSP reader wrote in and said she slices her zucchini in rounds when she makes zucchini lasagna. She said it’s very easy to serve!
Reader tip #2: instead of grilling, lay the zucchini slices flat on a baking sheet lined with parchment and bake on low (250 degrees F) for about 10 min. Cool, and then assemble the lasagna.
When you place the paper towel over the salted zucchini slices, the moisture will start to soak through immediately. Press the paper towel into the zucchini to drain out even more moisture.
To reduce even more moisture, the zucchini slices can be grilled before assembling the lasagna.

zucchini lasagna skillet and plate with fork

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Serving Tips

As always, I want to be completely honest about this recipe. It is delicious. It has so much taste, and the basil gives it a lovely freshness. It is not, however, the prettiest thing to serve.
It’s definitely necessary to let the lasagna rest for at least 10 to 15 minutes when it comes out of the oven.
It’s also vital that you don’t skip the first step where the zucchini slices are drained on paper towel. Even with doing these two things, there is still extra moisture that appears when you cut the first piece. That’s just the nature of zucchini.
After removing the first piece, let it drain for a minute or two, and then continue to cut your pieces.

This skillet zucchini lasagna has a lighter, fresher taste than a traditional recipe and using zucchini eliminates the pasta, plus adds a helping of vegetables. And in my book, those are two very good things!

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