Zucchini Lasagna Roll Ups
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Swap out the lasagna noodles for zucchini. It’s LOW CARB & so much healthier! You won’t miss the noodles at all!
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Thank you for sharing this recipe!
So when I made this for dinner one night, Ben said, “Oh, wow. This doesn’t suck.” I didn’t know what to make of that reaction. Then, about 3 minutes and 22 seconds later, he said, “Babe, I don’t know where this ranks in the things you’ve made but this definitely makes top 5.”
So that should basically summarize what this meal is all about.
We swap out the lasagna noodles for zucchini and roll them up in everything that is good in life – crumbled sausage, ricotta, Parmesan and mozzarella cheese, which is then baked in a pool of marinara sauce.
With everything that’s happening here, you won’t even miss the lasagna noodles. I promise. Plus, it’s low-carb, it makes enough to feed an army, and it is DUDE-friendly.
tips and tricks for success
- Salt the zucchini. Because zucchini has a high water content (94% water), salting the zucchini beforehand will help draw out the excess water, making it firmer and avoiding mushy, limp zucchini.
- Use your favorite meat. Italian sausage, ground beef, chicken or turkey will all work well here.
- Make ahead of time. Lasagna is a great dish to make ahead of time. Prep and assemble overnight, covered with aluminum foil and stored in the fridge.
- Freeze before baking. This will preserve the texture and prevent sogginess. Always use a freezer-safe baking dish, label, date and freeze up to 2 months.
what to serve with zucchini lasagna roll ups
Tools For This Recipe
Large cast iron skillet
Zucchini Lasagna Roll Ups: Frequently Asked Questions
Zucchini can vary so much in size but 3 large zucchini should be about 2 pounds.
Zucchini is very high in water and the salt will help draw out excess water.
Ground beef, chicken or turkey can be used instead of Italian sausage.
Absolutely! But because dried herbs are often more potent/concentrated than fresh herbs, you need less when using dry. The correct ratio is 1 tablespoon fresh herbs to 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
You can use your favorite kind of marinara sauce but we personally love Rao’s.
You can assemble ahead of time and store in the refrigerator, up to 24 hours in advance, baking right before serving.
Yes! Let cool completely; cover the roll ups tightly with plastic wrap, then aluminum foil. Freeze up to 2 months. For the best results, we recommend assembling, freezing then baking to help prevent any sogginess. But if you’ve already baked your roll ups, no worries at all – it can still be frozen!
Zucchini Lasagna Roll Ups
Ingredients
- 3 large zucchini, trimmed and sliced lengthwise into 24 ⅛-inch-thick strips
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¾ pound Italian sausage, casing removed
- 1 cup part skim ricotta cheese
- ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup chopped fresh basil leaves
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 ½ cups marinara sauce, divided
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella, divided
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with paper towels. Lay zucchini slices flat in a single layer onto the prepared baking sheet. Season with salt, to taste; let stand 15 minutes.
- Heat olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add Italian sausage and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the sausage as it cooks; drain excess fat.
- In a medium bowl, combine sausage, ricotta, Parmesan, egg, basil and garlic; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Spread 1 cup marinara sauce sauce onto the bottom of a large cast iron skillet over; set aside.
- Spread 1 tablespoon ricotta mixture evenly along each zucchini slice; sprinkle with 1 tablespoon mozzarella cheese. Roll up and place in the prepared skillet; repeat with remaining zucchini slices and filling. Top with remaining 1/2 cup marinara sauce and sprinkle with remaining 1 cup mozzarella.
- Place into oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until lasagna rolls are heated through and the cheese is beginning to brown.
- Serve immediately.
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Such a great recipe! We’re vegan so I had to make some modifications: made an almond ricotta and sautéed some bell pepper with Italian seasoning and fennel, as another reviewer recommended, instead of sausage. Added nutritional yeast instead of cheese. Very yummy! My sauce was a little watery, so next time I’ll let the zucchini sit on paper towels for longer.
Wow! Currently doing keto and found this recipe. Made it for dinner tonight. The family was skeptical but you don’t even miss the pasta! Even with salting the zucchini, the end result was very liquify. I think I cut my zucchini slices too thin {I need to buy a mandolin} but overall came out delicious!
Absolutely delicious! Made this a day ahead for a special Sunday lunch and it was super tasty. I’m vegetarian, so I omitted the sausage, although I may substitute for Beyond Meat the next time I make this. The only issue I had was that, despite the salting technique for the zucchini, the dish still came out watery for me.
Made this tonight and it was a hit! In order to prevent it from getting watery, I microwaved the zucchini slices for 4 minutes on top of paper towels. That got rid of a ton of water and they rolled up around the filling quite nicely and baked up perfectly with no water. It is such pretty dish, too. Definitely going into our rotation!
Did you salt them before time
Wow! Delicious! My dish came out a bit watery from the oven so I was a little concerned. However, it was delicious! My 4 year old who doesn’t typically go for anything green was all over it.
Will definitely make again 🙂
Did the zucchini roll and they came out delicious my next dish will be zucchini losagna
What do yall think??– can I make ahead, take and bake elsewhere?
or better to cook and reheat?
Would appreciate advice, thanks!
New single Dad trying to make it work!!
She says “You can even make this ahead of time – perfect for feeding a crowd or for packing leftovers for work the next day!” and “You can also make this ahead of time and freeze as needed!”
This dish was amazing! Your recipes almost always turn out so well for me. I laid the zucchini rolls seam side down to keep them from unraveling and cut the zucchini slices on a mandoline. I used 1lb. of mushroom Asiago chicken sausage and put whatever filling was leftover on top of the zucchini roll-ups under the sauce and cheese.
To freeze it, would you do that before or after it is cooked?
This was super yummy, might have made the zucchini too thin on the mandolin but my family loved it. Of course I was trying to make low carb and my husband wanted bread but still loved it. I used a cast iron and pre-made it this morning and it was great for dinner
This recipe is delicious! I used 1 pound sweet Italian sausage and doubled the other filling ingredients. Salting and drying zucchini slices is a must to avoid a watery sauce if making ahead of time. Baked this at 350F for 45 minutes. I tried both a mandolin and manually slicing but preferred the mandolin for the most consistent pieces.
How is everyone slicing the zucchini to get them so thin ??!! I tried a mandolin, but I can’t seem to get it to slice down the entire zucchini – I keep getting short slices ? A knife just won’t do it either – is there some trick I am missing ?? Help !
I had the same problem. My zucchini slices kept folding and breaking in half under the mandolin. I found that I had to slowly move my mandolin in the opposite direction as my zucchini was going, while gently pushing down on the zucchini. (It was easier than that sounds)
I used a handheld cheese slicer and they came out perfectly!
This was DELICIOUS!! I tried it the day I received the email. I couldn’t get the zucchini to stay rolled so I layered them in the pan. I need to do a better job of slicing the zucchini. My husband and I loved it! I’ve already shared the recipe with friends at work!
Can I freeze the roll ups before I bake them. I’m having 20 people for dinner
I agree with Ben. And you will not miss the pasta, if fact, I like it better than pasta and that is saying something! Thank you for this delightful approach to an all time favorite.
Thanks,
Sam
Can I freeze these before baking I’m having 20 people for dinner.
I’m going to try this cuz sounds Scrumptious, but can you give a brief description of how to cut the zucchini into the 24 x 1/8″ strips. And how wide?? Or will the direction take care of that detail
Use a Mandolin and they are as wide as the zucchini, or you can trim them if you like.
After reading all the comments, I may try ground chicken with spinach!
Thanks 🙂
Hi There!
Any suggestions for which veggies would work, instead of sausage?
Possibly spinach or broccoli?
Thoughts?
I’m excited to try this recipe. However, I’d love to see photos of how you cut and prepare the zucchini.
Length wise in strips on the mandolin
I used a handheld cheese slicer and they came out perfectly!