Enjoy this tasty low carb spiralized zucchini casserole as a side dish for a main meal or brunch. It’s got an egg base and a crunchy gluten free topping.
With the temperatures here in Connecticut consistently going above 70 degrees F, it won’t be long until it’s zucchini season. We are planning to plant our summer garden out in the backyard in a few more weeks when the threat of any frost has past.
Zucchini plants usually do well for us as long as we keep the bug away. Since I got my spiralizer, zucchini is my most favorite veggie to spiralize. This low carb spiralized zucchini casserole is something that I quickly put together one night this week after work as a vegetable side dish for some chicken I made.
I’m not sure if it’s because more people are turning to a low carb diet, but I’ve been having trouble finding pork rinds in the grocery stores lately. I finally found a stash at our local Walmart Supercenter when I was picking up some chips for a party.
I always look for them in the chip aisle so maybe they are hiding out somewhere else. Some people do make these at home, but then I’d have to find a place to get the skins. It’s just easier to buy them in a bag as I don’t have a lot of free time these days. Even our local Aldi’s doesn’t seem to have the pork rinds in stock lately.
As I try to cut back more on carbs, it’s really hard for me to give up fruits and vegetables. Now that I have started to pay more attention to my total daily carb intake, I’ve realized the majority of my carbs come from vegetables as well as berries which are my favorite low carb fruits.
I didn’t realize how many carbs there are in zucchini until I began to take a better look at the nutritional information which shows only about 25% of the carbs are fiber. This is significant for me as I am now counting total carbs rather than net so I can better maintain my weight.
I divided this spiralized zucchini casserole into six large pieces. When I calculated the nutritional information, each piece has about 4.5 total carbs. That doesn’t seem too bad, but I’d like to keep my total carb limit at about 20 grams. So one serving of this casserole uses up about a fourth of my carb limit.
To make things work, I’m going to have to cut back on my portion sizes when eating fruits and vegetables. I don’t think I’m ready to completely give these up yet because we usually get a lot of fruits and vegetables from our gardens in the summer and it would be really difficult for me not to eat them.
The base of this spiralized zucchini casserole is held together with eggs so it would be a nice dish to serve at brunch. I’ve been trying to sneak more eggs into my diet after realizing how healthy they are.
A lot of people still believe that eggs are bad for you, but if you look at all the vitamins and minerals in a large egg, it’s easy to see that they are quite nutritious. Just because eggs are high in cholesterol doesn’t mean they adversely affect blood cholesterol. It’s been shown that eating eggs actually increases the “good” cholesterol which has been shown to reduce the risk of many diseases.
Spiralized Zucchini Casserole
Ingredients
- butter
- 3 medium zucchini spiralized
- 3 eggs beaten
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
- 1/2 cup crushed pork rinds
- 6 tablespoons grated Asiago or Parmesan cheese, divided
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 375°F
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Grease baking pan with butter.
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Spiralize zucchini into large bowl. Add the eggs, 2 tablespoons of the cheese, garlic powder, salt and cajun seasoning. Combine well.
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Pour zucchini mixture into prepared pan and spread evenly.
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Sprinkle pork rinds and remaining 1/4 cup cheese on top.
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Cover pan with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
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Remove foil and continue to bake for another 15 minutes or until nicely browned on top.
Recipe Notes
Makes 8 servings
Nutrition per serving: 3.5g net carbs
Emily Kemp says
Love the sound of this and so easy for weeknights!
Rosette Rutman says
I keep kosher so cant use pork or bacon. What would you suggest using in place of that? Would a pressed cottage cheese work?
Lisa says
You can leave the pork rinds out or sprinkle on some low carb flour or low carb bread crumbs.
Dianne says
Could you make this with just zucchini slices? I don’t have a spiralizer.
Lisa says
I don’t see why not. You could even grate them and squeeze out a bit of the moisture.
Anna says
Can this dish be frozen with or without the pork rinds, maybe adding them the last 20-30 mins. of baking time?
Lisa says
I’d freeze it with the pork rinds. In fact, I freeze pork rinds all the time.
Inez says
I have a question for you about cutting back on vegetables. Are you just limiting yourself on low carb veggies like zukes and spaghetti squash? You’re still on good terms with salad greens? I am diabetic, and while I would not expect you to speak to that issue, a concern I have regarding my liver being very busy turning protein into glucose leaves me wondering, if I adopted cutting back drastically on these vegetables, what I would be eating?
Thanks for you contribution to the lchf community. It is saving my and my husband’s health!
Lisa says
Hello Inez! I stick to vegetables that are less than 10 grams carbs per cup. You can see a great list of vegetables comparing the carbs at http://allnaturalideas.com/top-ten-low-carb-vegetables/
Angelle says
The recipe states “grated” cheese, but the photos show “shredded” cheese. I picture grated parmesan cheese as the powdery type you buy in a plastic shaker, however, this type does not get very melty. Is it correct to assume you used a shredded bag-type or deli parmesan cheese?
Also, do you think I could add a protein, such as cooked shrimp or ham to this dish? Thanks!
Lisa says
I use a grater to shred the cheese which is why I call it “grated.”
Angelle says
Thanks, that what I figured! Have you ever added a meat to this dish? I was thinking shrimp, ham, or ground meat/sausage.
Lisa says
I’ve never added meat, but it would be a good add.
Jo-Lynn says
Could you use Spaghetti Squash in place of the zucchini?
Lisa says
I use them interchangeably so I’d say yes.
Mary says
Just made this last night and it was wonderful! I too doubled the seasonings except the salt. I am not a fan of pork rinds so I used Frenches crispy Jalapenos on one side and Frenches crispy fried carmelized onion on the other side. I highly recommend them if you are not a fan of pork rinds.. The jalapeno side was really spicy if you like that.
Lisa says
I prefer pork rinds as they add zero carbs, but if your not a fan, certainly use what you like. I do like the sound of the jalapeno!
Suzanne says
Could you use bacon instead of pork rinds?
Lisa says
Bacon is a great low carb topping. It goes with almost anything!
Emily Huval says
THIS WAS DELICIOUS!!! I doubled the seasoning (not the salt). It was perfect!! My husband gave me a thumbs up!!
Lisa says
That’s great! Thanks for sharing your results!
Darlene says
Aren’t there different kinds of zucchini? Would any of them work or only a specific type? My family likes it but I never have. Might try a piece to see if my palate has changed. Thanks!
Lisa says
There are many different varieties of zucchini, but all I’ve tried are similar in taste. Any can be spiralized and used in this recipe.
Ginger says
Uumm…at the top of the recipe the calories/fat are listed at 133/9.1. At the bottom it’s 110/6.6…which is correct?
Lisa says
The info at the top is for 6 servings and the bottom is for 8 servings so it depends on how you slice it. I’ll correct it for 8 servings since that is what was used.
Alison says
This looks amazing! I just got the Vegetizer Spiral Slicer and have been searching for recipes to try, so I’m definitely adding this to my list! 🙂
Lisa says
I hope you like it! I was eating this casserole for both breakfast and lunch.
heather smith says
You can find the pork rinds in your hispanic food section of your grocery store. I have no idea why they have moved then all from the chip aisle.
Lisa says
Now that I think about it, I think I did see the pork rinds in the hispanic aisle before. Thanks!
Kate @ Diethood says
Carb counting, calorie counting, fat counting… it makes my head spin. HAPPY to see something already good for me!!
Lisa says
LOL That’s what I love about low carb. I just try to keep carbs less than 10 per meal without keeping track of anything else!
Linda says
I am always looking for recipes that I can divide into portions and freeze. Would this work?
Also, do you recall the size of baking pan that you used? I use a toaster oven for all my baking so the big glass
pans just don’t fit.
Lisa says
Linda, this should work well in frozen portions. It was baked in a 7×11 pan with room to spare.
Healing Tomato says
I am so used to see the Spiralized zucchini’s as a pasta, that it is a nice change to see them being used in a casserole. Lovely recipe and I love all that cheese
Lisa says
Thanks! It’s much better than slicing or grating the zucchini for this casserole.
Shannon @ Dinner from the Heart says
I’ve been trying to talk myself into getting a spiralizer of some sort. Every time I think I have myself talked into it, I chicken out. I love the idea of making a zucchini casserole. It’s going on my list.
We’ve been eating more and more low carb options at our house, this recipe will just help us even more. Thanks! 🙂
Faith (An Edible Mosaic) says
I am so excited for zucchini season! It is such a versatile ingredient and this casserole looks like the perfect way to use it!