Low Carb Paleo Zucchini Lasagna

Preheat oven to 350ºF and rub a 9×13 inch baking dish with olive oil.

Using a mandoline, slice zucchini into thin slices, about 1/8 inch thick. Lay flat onto 2 cookie sheets and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon salt (it’s okay if some zoodles overlap on the pan). Bake for 15–25 minutes, until just lightly beginning to brown, to get all the moisture out.

Mix spice blend ingredients together and then mix half of it with the pork (the spice blend makes enough for 1 pound of ground pork).

While zoodles cook, heat a large pan on medium/high heat. Add seasoned ground pork, beef, diced onion, and garlic. Cook until onion is soft and meat is almost completely browned, about 7–10 minutes. Add in Italian seasoning, oregano, salt and a pinch of pepper and cook until golden. Set aside.

Drain cashews and place in a large, high-powered processor, along with lemon juice and spices. Pulse until cashews are broken down. With the food processor running, stream in water and blend until smooth. You will need to stop the food processor a lot and scrape down the sides to get the cashews broken down. If it’s not 100% totally smooth, it’s totally okay! Set aside,

Finally, mix tomato sauce and crushed tomatoes in a medium bowl.

Once zucchini are out of the oven, turn temperature to 375ºF. Then transfer them to a long piece of paper towel. Cover with another piece of paper towel and gently press out as much excess moisture as you can. Repeat with another paper towel on top (you can leave them on the same paper towel, just use a new one on top to press out the moisture.)

To assemble, start by pouring half the sauce mixture on the bottom, spreading out evenly, followed by half the meat. Layer half the zucchini noodles in a single layer, lightly overlapping them, followed by half the cheese mixture. Gently spread out the cheese to “seal in” in the zoodles. Then, sprinkle half the parsley on top.

Repeat the same layers.

Cover pan with tinfoil and bake until edges of lasagna are golden brown, about 40–45 minutes. Then uncover and cook and additional 10–15 minutes until the top layer of “cheese” is lightly browned and set. If desired, broil for 1–3 minutes if you want the top really browned.

Garnish with extra parsley and devour!

Notes:
1. You only need 4 zucchinis for the recipe, but I always like to use 5 so that I have some extra if some slices break or stick to the pan.
2. This is also good with all ground beef (sausage is best though.) If you go this route, double the Italian seasoning.
3. If not dairy-free, you can use 15 ounces of light ricotta cheese mixed with 1 egg and a pinch of salt and pepper instead of the cashew ricotta. You can also 8 ounces of mozzarella cheese as well to make this a more traditional lasagna. Just divide it into 2 (like all the other layers), sprinkling the mozzarella on top of the ricotta layers.
4. This can be made a day ahead, covered, and left in the fridge. It also makes great leftovers! The leftovers keep very well in the freezer.
5. I got the spice blend recipe from Tastes of Lizzy T.