Slow Carb Lasagna Recipe

*Lindsay’s Note: The following is a guest post by Ali Lawrence. Ali is a “Jill of all trades.” She writes about DIY projects, homey advice and healthy living on her blog Homey Improvements, works as a freelance writer, and is currently working towards becoming a nutritionist. She is awesome! You can follow her on Twitter @DIYfolks.

Slow Carb Lasagna Recipe

Lasagna is one of the most fulfilling, enjoyable meals to make, but its high calorie content can wreak havoc on a strict diet. Luckily, the ingredients in this slow carb lasagna recipe are easily adapted to lower calories and overall carbohydrate content.

What is “Slow Carb,” Anyway?

Tim Ferris introduced the concept of the slow carb diet in his book, The 4-Hour Body. The diet aims to lower starch consumption and includes foods that are low on the glycemic index and thus “slow carb.”

Health Benefits of a Slow Carb Diet

1. Fat Loss

Obviously, the most recognized health benefit of this diet plan is the overall reduction in body fat composition, which has been documented and confirmed by several case studies.

2. Steady Blood Sugar Levels

With the reduction in carbohydrate levels and inclusion of low-glycemic foods, blood sugar levels remain more level without high and low spikes caused by high-glycemic carbohydrates.

3. Reduced Inflammation

Several sufferers of Fibromyalgia report less overall inflammation (and therefore less pain) after implementing a slow carb diet.

Foods That Support a Slow-Carb Lifestyle

Approved slow carb foods include the following: eggs, meat, seafood, chickpeas, vegetables other than potatoes and yams, oil, lemons, limes, olives, tomatoes, avocados, cottage cheese, brown rice protein, hemp protein, pea protein, unflavored whey protein isolate, hot sauce, mustard, salsa, spices, unsweetened cocoa, vanilla extract and dry red wine.

Foods to Avoid

Foods to avoid on the slow carb diet include milk, cheese, refined soy, fruit, potatoes, yams, bread, rice, grains, oatmeal, quinoa, corn syrup, corn, popcorn, ketchup and alcohol.

Recipe for Slow Carb Lasagna

Ingredients

• 3 cups cooked spaghetti squash (1 large)
• A few pinches of Garlic powder, Onion powder, Dried basil, and Dried parsley
• 5 oz. shredded low fat mozzarella cheese (if you are going strict slow carb, then cut the cheese)
• Fresh basil for garnish (optional)

Meat Sauce:

• 1 lb Sweet Italian Sausage
• 1 lb Ground beef
• 1 Onion, finely chopped
• 3 Garlic cloves, minced
• 28 oz Crushed tomatoes
• 12 oz Tomato paste
• 12 oz Tomato sauce
• 1 tbls Sugar (opt)
• 1.5 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp Fennel seeds
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 2 tbls parsley (preferable fresh)

Directions for Meat Sauce

1. In a large soup pot, cook sausage, ground beef, onion and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Note: This is a large amount of sauce. I like to freeze it in packages to make this dinner quickly or even for other meals like over zucchini noodles. You’ll only use about 2 cups for this recipe.

Directions for Lasagna

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread approximately 1 cup of spaghetti squash on the bottom of a 11” x 9” casserole dish.

2. Top the spaghetti squash with the meat sauce from above. Sprinkle with spices mentioned above.

3 Top with 1.5 oz. of mozzarella cheese.

4. Add another layer of squash, meat sauce, spices and cheese. Finish with a final layer of squash topped with 2 oz. mozzarella cheese and spices.

5. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

6. Top with fresh basil before serving (optional).

Serve, and enjoy! This recipe is super healthy, high in protein and friendly on calorie content. The spaghetti squash also provides ample amounts of Vitamin A that make this dish truly delicious.