INGREDIENTS
- 3 pounds zucchini (about 5 to 6 good sized zucchini, enough for 8 to 10 cups of salted zucchini noodles)
- 3 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 16 ounces Italian sausage (in bulk, out of casings)
- 1 1/2 cups diced onion
- 3 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 Tbsp)
- 1 15-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 3/4 cup ricotta cheese
- 2 cups grated mozzarella cheese (about 8 ounces)
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 Spiralize the zucchini, toss with salt, let drain: Using a spiralizer, use the zucchini to make zucchini noodles (zoodles) with the device, following manufacturer’s directions. You should have a generous 8 cups of zucchini noodles.
Place in a colander over a bowl. Snip zucchini noodles with scissors here and there to keep them from tangling too much.
Toss the zoodles with 3 teaspoons of kosher salt. Let the zoodles drain of excess moisture while you make the sauce. Rinse really well to remove the salt.
2 Lightly brown the sausage: Coat the bottom of a large sauté pan with olive oil. Break up the Italian sausage into small clumps in the pan. Heat on medium heat and gently cook the sausage until it is just cooked through and lightly browned. Remove to a bowl. Discard all but 1 Tbsp of rendered fat.
3 Brown the onions and garlic: In the same pan, add the chopped onion. Cook until softened and lightly colored, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook a minute more.
4 Add tomatoes, cooked sausage, then simmer, add basil: Add the canned crushed tomatoes and cooked sausage to the pot with the onions. Bring to a simmer and lower the heat to maintain a low simmer. Cook for 5 to 6 additional minutes.
Stir in thinly sliced basil and 1 1/2 teaspoons of kosher salt.
5 Squeeze moisture out of zoodles: While the sauce is simmering, use a clean dish towel (or several paper towels) to squeeze more moisture out of the zucchini noodles.
6 Add zoodles to sauce, place in casserole: Add the zucchini noodles to the pot with the tomato sausage sauce. Gently stir to combine so that all of the noodles are coated with sauce.
Transfer into an oiled 8×13 casserole dish and spread into an even layer.
7 Top with ricotta, Mozzarella, and Parmesan, and bake: Arrange the ricotta in clumps on the casserole. Press the ricotta into the zucchini noodles to penetrate the casserole a bit. Mix the grated mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese together and sprinkle over the top in an even layer.
Bake at 350°F, uncovered, for 35 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned and bubbly. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.