I tried a new recipe this week and it turned out so great that my family thought I should share it.\u00a0 We love meaty, cheesy lasagna, but, unless you can make your own pasta from soaked, freshly ground flour, what do we use instead of noodles?\u00a0 I had heard of zucchini used instead of noodles, but usually it’s a vegetarian lasagna.\u00a0 So I came up with a combination that we really liked.\u00a0 The brands I used are in parentheses.\u00a0 Here’s the recipe:<\/p>\n
1 lb, fresh pork sausage (Georgia’s)
\n1 lb, ground grassfed beef (Law Family Ranch)
\n1 organic green pepper, chopped
\n1 medium organic onion, chopped
\n2 cans organic tomato sauce (Muir Glen)
\n1 tablespoon organic dried basil (Frontier)
\n1 tablespoon organic dried Italian seasoning (McCormick)
\n3 to 4 large zucchini, peeled and sliced thin, longwise, about 1\/8 to 1\/4 inch (local farmers’ market)
\n16 oz cottage cheese (Stryk’s Dairy raw milk cottage cheese)
\n1 pound organic cheese, shredded, Mozzarella or Provolone
\n8 ounces grated Parmigiano Reggiano<\/p>\n
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.<\/p>\n
Brown sausage and ground beef in a large skillet over medium heat.\u00a0 When meat is browned, add chopped green pepper and onion and cook until onion is translucent.\u00a0 Add tomato sauce, basil, and Italian seasoning. Simmer for 5-10 minutes.<\/p>\n
Cover the bottom of the lasagna pan with a layer of zucchini.\u00a0 Cover the zucchini with half of the meat sauce mixture, then add half of the shredded cheese. Spread all of the cottage cheese evenly over the shredded cheese.\u00a0 Repeat layers of zucchini, meat sauce, and shredded cheese.\u00a0 Sprinkle 4 oz. grated parmigiano Reggiano over the top of the lasagna.<\/p>\n
Bake for 45 – 50 minutes until cheese is browned.\u00a0 Serve with extra grated Parmigiano Reggiano if desired.<\/p>\n
Note:\u00a0 The zucchini will have liquid in the bottom of the pan.\u00a0 You can serve with a slotted spatula to drain off some of the liquid if you prefer.\u00a0 Our family found that the thick sauce-like liquid left in the pan tasted great on its own or spooned over the servings of lasagna.\u00a0 Whatever you do, don’t throw it out–it’s delicious!<\/p>\n
Sources:\u00a0 The organic herbs, organic vegetables, and organic cheeses can be found in many farmers’ markets, grocery or health food stores.\u00a0 For sources of grassfed, pastured meats and raw milk cheeses go the the Local Resources page<\/a> on the Houston-Galveston WAPF chapter website.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"