This gorgeous white lasagne is made with eggplant as the noodles so it’s naturally lower in carbs and completely gluten-free.
Today I am sharing a guest post from my lovely friend, Katie Webster of Healthy Seasonal Recipes. Katie is a true delight. She’s sweet, funny, and has an infectious laugh. She also happens to be a trained chef, food stylist and photographer. When I put out a call for a few guest posts after my husband’s accident, Katie instantly stepped up to the plate. And I am certainly happy she did. Look at this gorgeous creation! I can’t wait to try making it myself. Thanks so much, Katie!
I am so excited to be visiting here today. I met Carolyn earlier this year because we were both on the CabotFit Team. When we met, I knew we’d be good friends because we are both moms, fitness fanatics and proud food science dorks. [Strange but true that we love chatting about swapping ingredients and problem solving ways to get recipes to work.] Then there’s also the fact that we’re both healthy food bloggers.
When Carolyn told me that she would love to have me guest post here on All Day I Dream About Food, I leapt at the opportunity, and I knew just which recipe I wanted to share. I pitched the idea for my Roasted Garlic and Chevre Low Carb Lasagna, and she loved the idea. It is one of those recipes I have made so many times, at this point, I don’t even have to measure when I make it. I know it that well. The reason being that it was the absolutely top favorite recipe when I had a personal chef business. Week after week, I made this lasagna, and my low-carb clients were as happy as could be. And even though I gave up my business years ago, I still make this recipe pretty regularly. It’s a keeper for sure.
Here’s Why:
- Left-Overs Rock: first and foremost are the left-overs. I know you’d think that was the last thing, but I am always looking for something yummy to heat up for lunch, and this always hits the spot. Just cut off a serving and pop it in the microwave (or an oven works well too if you prefer.)
- Make-Ahead: And at this time of year, with all of the looming holidays and social obligations it is a great make-ahead option. Just prepare it through step 4 and refrigerate it up to a day in advance.
- No just low carb it’s also Vegetarian, GF and Lactose Free: Because it has cashew cream in it instead of dairy milk or cream it is friendly for lactose-free folks. So vegetarians, folks with celiac disease and low carb lovers will all be happy with this one.
- Great Party Food: Like this recipe’s carby cousin (a lasagna with noodles) this recipe is great for feeding a crowd. Just double it to serve twelve.
- Best part is that it tastes so good!: Creamy garlic and chevre are two flavors that I think were made to be together. I love how savory it is!
About the ingredients:
This recipe uses zucchini, eggplant and onions, all thinly sliced in lieu of noodles. The trick to it is just very thinly cutting the veggies. I use a mandolin to do it, and they get nice and thin, just like a lasagna noodle. If you have a sharp knife that works too, but try to get it around the same thickness as a noodle.
This is a white lasagna with a creamy sauce. So instead of tomato sauce this has cashew cream in its place. To make that, just puree raw cashews with water for a few minutes until it is completely smooth. It takes a few minutes, but you don’t want any graininess. Cashew cream is a great vegan low-carb alternative to cream. It also makes a mean crème brulee, but that’s a recipe for another time.
The addition of chevre and roasted garlic makes it ultra-rich. No one will miss the meat.
Then all it takes is a bit of assembly. I top it off with Parmesan (which has a very low amount of lactose in it, so it is great for lactose intolerance.) you can also use hard aged goat cheese or goat cheddar for the top.
Hopefully this will be one of those recipes that you think is a keeper too. Let me know what you think, and I would be so glad to meet you! I’d love if you stopped by my blog for a visit. Also feel free to keep up with the latest on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/HealthySeasonalRecipes or find me obsessively pinning away on Pinterest http://www.pinterest.com/healthyseasonal/ .
- 1 head garlic
- 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ cup raw cashews pieces 2.25 ounces
- ¾ cup filtered water
- 1 egg
- 4 ounces chevre or fresh goat cheese
- 1 tablespoon chopped mixed fresh herbs such as thyme rosemary and sage
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon Freshly ground pepper
- 2 medium zucchini stem cut off (1.5 pounds)
- 1 small eggplant stem cut off (1.25 pounds)
- 1 small sweet onion peeled and cored
- 1 medium tomato cored and thinly sliced
- ½ cup shredded Parmesan Reggiano or Hard Aged Goat Cheese
- Fresh basil for garnish
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut ends of garlic head off with a serrated knife exposing individual tips of garlic cloves. Place root-side down on a double layer of aluminum foil and drizzle olive oil over the exposed garlic clove ends. Wrap foil into a packet and transfer to the oven (seam side-up.) Roast garlic until soft, fragrant and starting to brown, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Remove from oven and open packet and allow garlic to cool.
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Puree cashew pieces and water in blender until completely smooth, 1 ½ to 2 minutes, scraping down sides occasionally. Squeeze garlic out of papery skins into the cashew mixture and discard skins. Add egg, chevre or fresh goat cheese, chopped mixed herbs, salt and pepper and puree until smooth and creamy.
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Cut zucchini, eggplant and onion lengthwise as thinly as possible into sheets with a mandolin or very sharp knife.
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Coat a 9 by 9 inch baking dish or other 2 ½ quart baking dish with cooking spray. Spoon about ¼ cup chevre sauce onto bottom of the baking dish. Layer a third of the zucchini, eggplant and onion into the bottom of the dish. Layer in ½ cup chevre sauce. Top with another layer of vegetables and sauce. Top with a final layer of vegetables, tomatoes, and any remaining chevre sauce. Cover with a layer of parchment and then cover with foil and transfer to the oven.
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Bake until completely cooked through and the vegetables are soft, 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. An instant read thermometer inserted into the center of the casserole will register 180 degrees or higher. Remove foil and top with the Parmesan or aged goat cheese. Return to the oven until the cheese is melted, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool 15 minutes before garnishing with basil and serving.
Serves 6. Each serving has 12 g of carbs and 4 g of fiber. Total NET CARBS = 8 g.
200 Calories; 13g Fat (56.3% calories from fat); 11g Protein; 12g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 49mg Cholesterol; 480mg Sodium
Bio: Katie has been a professional recipe developer for more than a decade. She is a contributing editor at EatingWell Magazine and writes recipes for Fitness Magazine and Parents Magazine. Her recipes and photography can also be found on her blog Healthy Seasonal Recipes http://www.healthyseasonalrecipes.com/. She lives with her husband and two high-energy daughters in Vermont.
