These low carb zucchini lasagna rolls are stuffed with cheese, slathered in pesto, and smothered in mozzarella. All the great flavours of summer in one healthy side dish. 

Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow? Well, I don’t know about Mary, but my garden is absolutely off the hook this year. Things grow big in Oregon…really, really big. I noticed this last year when we planted some sunflowers by our side door that became absolute giants. They were well over 8 feet tall with heads like dinner plates, so big and heavy that they curled over the walkway. It was a little scary, actually. You felt like the flowers were going to eat you as you ventured out. Feed me, Seymour, feed me! They hung so low, I actually knocked my head against them a few times, sending sunflower seeds scattering. This year, we channeled that crazy growth into our raised veggie beds, resulting into a dizzying amount of tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers. And of course zucchini. Having moved here from New England, where gardens tend to grow rather grudgingly, it’s like we’ve hit the summer vegetable jackpot.

Yay for zucchini. Really, hip hip hooray for zucchini. I’d say that the long green squash easily rivals cauliflower for low carb usefulness. It’s just so versatile and plays nicely with both sweet and savoury flavours. So while I am having trouble coming up with enough ways to use all of the zukes from my garden, I am having damned fun trying. I do send one or two over to my neighbours every day or so. And I’ve grated a bunch and frozen it for the zucchini-less months of the year. We grill some every few days and toss it with olive oil and garlic. And I’ve made countless batches of low carb zucchini waffles and low carb zucchini bread. But I haven’t run out of steam yet!

So here is one more zucchini recipe to add to your coffers, this one a filling low carb side dish. I love grilling long zucchini slices and treating them like lasagna noodles. My Grilled Zucchini Lasagna has long been one of the most popular recipes on my blog. The dry heat of the grill helps eliminate moisture without needing to salt the zucchini, so you don’t end up with a dish swimming in a pool of liquid. This time, with an abundance of fresh summer pesto that my husband made, I decided to play with that same lasagna concept, filling the zucchini slices with a ricotta mixture and rolling them up. Then I slathered on some pesto, sprinkled the whole thing with mozzarella and baked it. It was good. I mean, really really good. The bubbly, cheesy, basil-y, garlic-y zucchini rolls were a perfect summer side dish. And a great way to use up 3 of my zucchini. Now if I could just figure out what to do with the million other zukes coming out of my garden, I’d be in business.

Have you ever tried making zucchini fritters? These Zucchini Fritters from Fifteen Spatulas look perfect. They aren’t low carb but I bet you could use some almond flour! And how about this Skinny Zucchini Casserole from Give Recipe – replace the flour with some coconut flour for a low carb version.

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Pesto Zucchini Lasagna Rolls

Prep Time

20 mins

Cook Time

45 mins

Total Time

1 hr 5 mins

 

These low carb zucchini lasagna rolls are stuffed with cheese, slathered in pesto, and smothered in mozzarella. All the great flavours of summer in one healthy side dish.

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: 6 to 8 servings

Calories: 224 kcal

Ingredients

• 3 medium zucchini about 8 to 10 inches long
• 1 tbsp avocado or olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 4 ounces chopped spinach
• 1 cup full fat ricotta
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 cup pesto
• 1 cup grated mozzarella

Instructions

1. Preheat grill or a grill pan to medium.
2. Trim ends of zucchini and slice lengthwise into 1/4 inch thick slices. You should get about 16 long slices of zucchini.
3. Set zucchini on grill and grill until tender and much of the moisture has been removed, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Remove from grill and set aside on layers of paper towel.
4. Preheat oven to 350F and lightly grease a 9x12 inch glass or ceramic baking dish.
5. Add oil to a large skillet set over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add chopped spinach and cook until wilted but still bright green.
6. In a large bowl, combine ricotta, Parmesan, egg, salt, and pepper. Add spinach mixture and stir until well combined.
7. Take a zucchini slice and spread a heaping tablespoon of the ricotta filling over 1/2 of it. Roll up tightly and place into the prepared baking dish. Repeat with remaining zucchini and filling.
8. Spread pesto over zucchini rolls. Sprinkle with mozzarella and bake 30 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbling.

Recipe Notes

Serves 6 to 8. For 6 servings, each serving has 5.41g NET CARBS.

Food energy: 224kcal
Total fat: 16.71g
Calories from fat: 150
Cholesterol: 40mg
Carbohydrate: 7.02g
Total dietary fiber: 1.61g
Protein: 13.32g

Nutrition Facts

Pesto Zucchini Lasagna Rolls

Amount Per Serving

Calories 224 Calories from Fat 150

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 16.71g 26%

Cholesterol 40mg 13%

Total Carbohydrates 7.02g 2%

Dietary Fiber 1.61g 6%

Protein 13.32g 27%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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