I might be LOCO, but this recipe was amazing! Here is my take on the 21 Day Fix Mexican Lasagna recipe that has been floating around our challenge groups and Pinterest lately. I don’t like using both of my yellow containers in one meal, ESPECIALLY at dinner time. I typically will eat all of my yellows in the first part of the day or by 4pm, especially if I am doing a round of the Fix. So, it got me thinking. The recipes for this on Pinterest call for corn tortillas and refried beans. I decided to try using thinly sliced zucchini in place of the tortillas and seasoned mashed sweet potatoes instead of refried beans. NOW, this may not be everyone’s cup of tea and I am ok with that! I am a huge fan of sweet potatoes so this works for me and is also higher in nutritional value than the fat free refried beans! BONUS! Here it is – the 21 Day Fix Zucchini Mexican Lasagna.
If you don’t like the sweet potatoes, sub them out for the refried beans OR if you don’t have any yellows left for the day, don’t add any at all. 🙂
- 2 T olive oil
- 1 large red bell pepper, diced
- 1 large orange bell pepper, diced
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 20 oz lean ground beef
- 1 T chili powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- Ground pepper, to taste
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 (3.5oz) can diced chilis, drained
- 3-4 large zucchini, thinly sliced
- 2 cups mashed sweet potatoes (You may use fat free refried beans instead if you prefer!)
- 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar Jack cheese, divided
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped and divided
- Preheat oven to 375 and spray a 9x13" baking dish with cooking spray or olive oil, set aside.
- In a 12" skillet, heat oil and add diced peppers & onions, sauté until tender. Remove from skillet and set aside.
- Placed sliced zucchini into the pan and lightly sauté until cooked and slightly translucent. Remove & set aside
- In the skillet, brown the ground beef and break it up as it cooks. Cook through. Add spices, green chilis, onions & peppers and 1/4 cup of water. Simmer on medium low for about 10 minutes, stirring often.
- While meat and veggies are simmering, line the bottom of your baking dish with zucchini slices.
- Spread 1 cup mashed sweet potatoes over the zucchini (see sweet potato prep below)
- Layer half of the meat mixture over the sweet potatoes
- Sprinkle 1/2 cup shredded cheese and 1/8 cup fresh cilantro
- Repeat layers - zucchini, sweet potatoes, meat and top with 1 cup cheese and remaining cilantro
- Bake for 30 minutes until heated through and cheese is bubbly.
- Let sit for 5 minutes before serving. Cut into 6 equal parts and serve.
- Either bake or microwave your sweet potatoes until tender and they mash easily. Remove from peel and mash in a bowl. Season with chili powder and onion powder, to taste. Mix well.
- If you prefer to use fat free refried beans, sub that out for the sweet potatoes and the container counts for the 21 Day Fix will remain the same.
- 1 Green, 1 Yellow, 1 Red, 1 Blue, 1 spoon