Mediterranean Diet Lasagna Recipe (with Ground Lamb)

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You’re going to love this Mediterranean diet lasagna recipe because we lightened up a classic comfort food and added in flavorful ground lamb from Texas.

Next month we are headed to a two-week cruise around the Mediterranean Sea, so we are getting inspired by fresh ingredients and Mediterranean diet recipes.

This is a veggie packed dish that still eats like a hearty meal. It’s a perfect way to use up summer vegetables like zucchini and bell peppers, but can also be made in cooler months, thanks to the hearty addition of ground lamb.

Our Homemade Lasagna Recipe is one of our favorite recipes of all time, but it is really cheesy, heavy, and not so light. 

This Mediterranean style lasagna is much lighter, lower calorie, easy to portion out, and filled with veggies.

Lasagna using Ground Lamb

When you’re making a Mediterranean-inspired recipe, why not add in flavorful lamb, which is a staple protein in many countries along the Mediterranean.

We reached for Capra Lamb, which is a TX-based lamb company that partners with real ranchers with sustainable farming practices.

This means the lamb meat has no added hormones or antibiotics, the animals are humanely pasture raised, and the animals consume a natural, healthy vegetarian diet.

We love using ground lamb instead of ground beef to add more flavor to our cooking. It also carries twice the omega-3 fats compared to ground beef, which is a healthy win.

The addition of ground lamb takes a veggie lasagna and brings in added Mediterranean flavors that reminds us of our time in Santorini, Greece and Capri, Italy.

Mediterranean Lasagna Sauce

We kept this recipe pretty easy by using store-bought marinara sauce for this recipe. 

Feel free to incorporate any of these lasagna sauce variations to this recipe as a substitute if you’d prefer:

• Homemade tomato sauce
• Bechamel sauce
• White sauce, like a jarred alfredo 

Adding Zucchini to the Lasagna Noodles

We added a layer of zucchini under the lasagna noodles as a way to add in more veggies. 

If you are looking to omit all the carbs in this recipe, just use the zucchini planks alone without the pasta for a layered keto lasagna casserole, or for smaller low carb lasagna roll ups. It’s similiar to this zucchini involtini recipe.

You can also substitute normal lasagna noodles for whole wheat noodles if you’d like.

When cooking the lasagna noodles, we boiled them al dente. 

This allowed the noodle to be pliable enough to make the lasagna roll up, but also allowed more time for it to cook in the oven when the dish baked all together, without getting too mushy.

Optional Mediterranean Lasagna Fillings

Feel free to get creative with your Mediterranean-style lasagna layers. Adding in a layer of any of these fillings is a unique and healthy way to add in additional flavor in different ways:

• Kalamata Olives for an added briny flavor.
• Sun-Dried tomatoes for a sweet addition.
• Artichoke hearts for a bright, tangy addition.
• Fresh tomatoes to compliment the marinara sauce.
• Red pepper flakes for a kiss of heat.

Lasagna Roll Ups vs. Traditional Stacked Lasagna

For this recipe, we created lasagna roll ups instead of making a traditional stacked lasagna.

Not only does the presentation look more impressive, but it makes portioning out the lasagna really easy. 

From family gatherings to meal prep, we think the roll ups store and serve easier.  The texture created in the rolls is also great, and we love our texture in recipes. 

Easy Mediterranean Lasagna Recipe 

Serves: 8-10 roll ups

Prep Time: 25 Minutes

Cook Time: 15 Minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 pound lasagna noodles 
• 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 1 large zucchini cut into planks, patted dry with a paper towel
• 1 pound Capra Ground Lamb
• ¼ cup minced red bell peppers
• ¼ cup minced sweet onion
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 pound ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 cup packed chopped fresh spinach
• ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
• 3 cups marinara pasta sauce, divided 
• ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• Chopped basil, for garnish
• Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Bring a pasta pot of water, seasoned with some salt to boil.
3. Boil lasagna noodles for 6 minutes, then drain and cover with a drizzle of olive oil. We cooked the entire box of lasagna noodles in case some ripped, but you only need 8-10 cooked noodles.
4. In a medium heat large saucepan, add 1 Tbsp of remaining olive oil and sauté the sweet onion and bell pepper for 4-5 minutes, until soft. Then, add the ground lamb. Once no longer pink, add the minced garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add 1 cup of tomato sauce and the spices, let simmer for 15 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, use a mandolin to slice the zucchini into thin, pliable planks. We used the thinnest setting. Then pat dry with a paper towel to get out any excess moisture.
6. In a medium bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese, feta cheese, egg, ½ teaspoon salt, and chopped spinach. Stir until the cheese mixture is well combined.
7. In a prepared baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray, add 1 cup of marinara on the bottom of the pan.
8. Lay out one lasagna noodle, cover it with zucchini planks in a single layer, the spinach ricotta mixture, and the lamb meat sauce.
9. Gently roll up the lasagna noodle from the short end. 
10. Lay the lasagna roll ups on top of the marinara sauce base with the seam side down. Once all the roll ups have been assembled and placed in the baking dish, spoon over the additional cup of sauce on top of the lasagna and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese or an Italian cheese blend.
11. Bake for 15-20 minutes.
12. Remove from the oven and top with fresh basil and parmesan cheese. You can also top with lemon zest if you’d like!

Note: Any extra lamb lasagna roll ups make amazing leftovers! Just store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Continue to Content

Easy Mediterranean Lasagna Recipe

Yield: 8-10 Lasagna Roll Ups

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Packed with veggies, this Mediterranean Diet Lasagna Recipe is a great meal to use up summer produce, but hearty enough for cold months too!

Print

Ingredients

• 1 pound lasagna noodles
• 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 1 large zucchini cut into planks, patted dry with a paper towel
• 1 pound Capra Ground Lamb
• ¼ cup minced red bell peppers
• ¼ cup minced sweet onion
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 pound ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 cup packed chopped fresh spinach
• ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
• 3 cups marinara pasta sauce, divided
• ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• Chopped basil, for garnish
• Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Bring a pasta pot of water, seasoned with some salt to boil.
3. Boil lasagna noodles for 6 minutes, then drain and cover with a drizzle of olive oil. We cooked the entire box of lasagna noodles in case some ripped, but you only need 8-10 cooked noodles.
4. In a medium heat large saucepan, add 1 Tbsp of remaining olive oil and saute the sweet onion and bell pepper for 4-5 minutes, until soft. Then, add the ground lamb. Once no longer pink, add the minced garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add 1 cup of tomato sauce and the spices, let simmer for 15 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, use a mandolin to slice the zucchini into thin, pliable planks. We used the thinnest setting. Then pat dry with a paper towel to get out any excess moisture.
6. In a medium bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese, feta cheese, egg, ½ teaspoon salt, and chopped spinach. Stir until the cheese mixture is well combined.
7. In a prepared baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray, add 1 cup of marinara on the bottom of the pan.
8. Lay out one lasagna noodle, cover it with zucchini planks in a single layer, the spinach ricotta mixture, and the lamb meat sauce.
9. Gently roll up the lasagna noodle from the short end. 
10. Lay the lasagna roll ups on top of the marinara sauce base with the seam side down. Once all the roll ups have been assembled and placed in the baking dish, spoon over the additional cup of sauce on top of the lasagna and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese or an Italian cheese blend.
11. Bake for 15-20 minutes.
12. Remove from the oven and top with fresh basil and parmesan cheese. You can also top with lemon zest if you’d like!

Notes

Any extra lamb lasagna roll ups make amazing leftovers! Just store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

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Lover of Lamb? Don’t Miss These Other Delicious Recipes!

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