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Recipe Connection: Sausage Zucchini Bake

August 12th, 2009 · 45 Comments · Do It Yourself, Frugality, Kids in the Kitchen, Recipes

Sausage Zucchini Bake

Is everyone still drowning in zucchini out there?  If you’re looking for a low-carb (no-carb?), filled with veggies, use-up-your-zucchini meal that fills tummies and pleases tastebuds, you’re at the right post. This may well be our favorite summer meal, and I love it because it’s so healthy and easy to make.

I also have some great memories of my two-year-old son slicing zucchini with his cheese slicer that looks like a meat cleaver.  (See this post for a photo!)  Buddy Boy completely did the zucchini job himself two years ago.  …If only I could get him to help me in the kitchen like that now! (“Mom, can I go outside and play with my friends?”)

You’ll want to find a tasty sausage for this recipe, and use a spaghetti sauce that you know your family likes.  Those two ingredients are the star players and change the flavor dramatically.  We used some good pastured pork sausage this summer, but in the past I have used cheap ground turkey and made it into homemade sausage.


 

Here is the print version of the recipe.  Please scroll down to see a pictorial version for more information.  Enjoy!

Sausage Zucchini Bake
Print
Recipe type: Dinners
Author: Katie Kimball
Ingredients
  • 1 pound sausage, mild or spicy, or <a href=”http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2012/10/03/how-to-make-homemade-sausage-seasoning/” data-mce-href=”http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2012/10/03/how-to-make-homemade-sausage-seasoning/”>homemade</a><br data-mce-bogus=”1″>
  • 1 chopped onion
  • 1 chopped green pepper
  • 1-3 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1-2 large zucchini, sliced
  • 1 jar spaghetti sauce or 3 c. homemade
  • 1 Tbs fresh basil, chopped
  • 1-2 Roma tomatoes, sliced
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
  • Parmesan cheese
Instructions
  1. Brown sausage.
  2. Saute onion, pepper and garlic (<a href=”http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2009/05/18/food-for-thought-garlic-and-onion-health-benefits-and-nutrition/” target=”_blank” data-mce-href=”http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2009/05/18/food-for-thought-garlic-and-onion-health-benefits-and-nutrition/”>add last</a>) with the meat (in olive oil? See <a href=”http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2009/08/11/olive-oil-update-can-you-saute-with-evoo/” target=”_blank” data-mce-href=”http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2009/08/11/olive-oil-update-can-you-saute-with-evoo/”>this post </a>for research!).
  3. Pour a little spaghetti sauce in a 9×13 glass baking dish.
  4. Layer 1-2 large sliced zucchinis on top.
  5. Mix the remaining spaghetti sauce in a large bowl with the sauteed meat and veggies and the fresh basil.
  6. Pour over the zucchini.
  7. Layer sliced tomatoes (they don’t have to be Romas, but those are prettier) on top, then cover with mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese.
  8. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake for 15-30 minutes longer, until the cheese is browned and the sides are bubbling.
Notes

*Note: If you want to make sure the zucchini gets soft, you can optionally parboil it for a few minutes before layering in the pan. I skip that step because I hate making more dishes! Also, the dish will be pretty watery at the end if you use raw zukes, so either parboil, roast on a cookie sheet, or slice/shred and salt the zucchini and drain well before layering.

Since I’m learning so much about the <a href=”http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2009/08/10/monday-mission-analyzing-aluminum-foil-in-august/” target=”_blank” data-mce-href=”http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2009/08/10/monday-mission-analyzing-aluminum-foil-in-august/”>dangers of aluminum</a>, I chose to tent the aluminum foil so it didn’t really touch the cheese.

You can also put parchment paper under the foil so it doesn’t touch the food OR simply invert a cookie sheet over the baking dish.

If you roasted your zucchini, use the same cookie sheet as the “lid” above.

 

Sausage Zucchini Bake

1 pound sausage, mild or spicy, or homemade ($1-$3)
1 chopped onion ($0.30)
1 chopped green pepper ($0.33-$1)
1-3 cloves garlic, crushed ($0.20)
1-2 large zucchini, sliced (free-$0.60)
1 jar spaghetti sauce or 3 c. homemade ($1 or less)
1 Tbs fresh basil, chopped (a few cents)
1-2 Roma tomatoes, sliced (free-$0.75)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese ($1.50)
Parmesan cheese

Super Foods: 4, 5 if you use turkey
Cost: $5-8

Brown sausage. Saute onion, pepper and garlic (add last) with the meat
(in olive oil?  See this post for research!).

Pour a little spaghetti sauce in a 9×13 glass baking dish.  Layer 1-2 large sliced zucchinis on top.

recipe for zucchini

*Note:  If you want to make sure the zucchini gets soft, you can optionally parboil it for a few minutes before layering in the pan.  I skip that step because I hate making more dishes! Also, the dish will be pretty watery at the end if you use raw zukes, so either parboil, roast on a cookie sheet, or slice/shred and salt the zucchini and drain well before layering.

Mix the remaining spaghetti sauce in a large bowl with the sauteed meat and veggies and the fresh basil.

sausage zucchini recipePour overtop the zucchini.

Layer sliced tomatoes (they don’t have to be Romas, but those are prettier) on top, then cover with mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese.

recipe with zucchini and tomatoes

img_7227Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake for 15-30 minutes longer, until the cheese is browned and the sides are bubbling.  Since I’m learning so much about the dangers of aluminum, I chose to tent the aluminum foil so it didn’t really touch the cheese, like so:

img_7228

You can also put parchment paper under the foil so it doesn’t touch the food OR simply invert a cookie sheet over the baking dish. If you roasted your zucchini, use the same cookie sheet as the “lid” here.

Not perhaps the most photogenic meal, especially if you don’t take the time to get the extra moisture out of the zukes first…but one of the most delicious recipes I have!

sausage zucchini recipe

Challenge yourself to get as many ingredients as you can from your Farmer’s Market or your garden! Just another reason to love this dish.

Find the ultimate list of zucchini recipes at The Finer Things in Life.

It was a tough choice, but I chose this as my Favorite Recipe for Life as MOM’s Ultimate Recipe Swap today. There are so many good ones!

Other Great Summer Recipes:

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Kitchen Stewardship is dedicated to balancing God’s gifts of time, health, earth and money.  If you feel called to such a mission, read more at Mission, Method, and Mary and Martha Moments.


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