People love to make fun of zucchini this time of year. The internet is full of memes about how ridiculously abundant the stuff is, and there’s even one of those made-for-social-media “national days” dedicated to sneaking zucchinis onto your unsuspecting neighbors’ porches (that was Aug. 8 BTW). My favorite zucchini-avoidance tactic is when friends stop by and ooh and ahh over your gigantic zucchinis — so of course you offer them one — but then, oops! they “forget” to take it home.

Admittedly it doesn’t help zucchini’s cause that’s it’s also tomato season, and tomatoes are clearly the produce stars of the late summer. Instead of article headlines titled, “What to do when you have WAY too much zucchini,” tomatoes get, “40 Ways to Do Justice to Summer Tomatoes.” So unfair.

But I gotta say, I am in camp giant zucchini, and the more the better. I think it’s super gratifying — miraculous really — when you go out in your yard and find an enormous vegetable growing there from a tiny seedling you planted in May — and especially since that hefty squash wasn’t even there like three days before. It’s amazing.

But when you can eat something that combines zucchini and fresh summer tomatoes? And cheese? Well, I’m here for it. This zucchini lasagna was inspired by my bumper crop of behemoths as well as my daughter’s newfound love of ricotta cheese (which probably stemmed from my making this about 50 times in the last three months). Plus it’s yet another use (#1,074) for Summer Tomato Sauce — my all-time favorite recipe (that’s not really a recipe because I make it so often). But don’t let the idea of making homemade tomato sauce scare you off from making this; it’s perfectly good with jarred sauce, too.

If you’re trying to be low-carb or keto, this lasagna is for you. But even if you generally prefer your pasta dishes with actual pasta in them, you will still like — no, make that love — this. It’s really satisfying, and I (shameless carb lover) did not miss the noodles at all (nor the meat for that matter, but by all means add some if your family is not ready for meat-free weeknights).

To make this easily, it helps to use a mandoline (AKA my single most terrifying — but also extremely useful — kitchen tool), but if you don’t have one, you can just cut the zucchinis into planks with a big sharp knife, which, yes, sounds scary but is nothing compared to the mandoline in my opinion. If you’ve used one, you know what I’m talking about; just be careful.

It’s a little fortuitous that I was having some technical difficulties and couldn’t post this last week (you know, when it was still summer) because the more I think about it, the more I think this makes a great meal for busy school nights. You can put this together on a weekend and then bake it on a night when you don’t have time to be in the kitchen but would still like to eat something that’s not from Postmates. Even a super-stressed high schooler with So. Much. Homework. can manage to put this in the oven and set a timer. I think.

Zucchini Lasagna
Ingredients
1-2 large zucchinis (or enough small zucchinis to equal roughly 1.5-2 lb)
Salt
1 1/2-2 cups tomato sauce (homemade from the link above or your favorite store-bought brand; I like Dave’s Gourmet Heirloom Tomato Sauce and Trader Giotto’s Tomato Basil Marinara from Trader Joe’s, which is like $2)
1 15-oz. container whole milk ricotta
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup grated parmesan

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Using a mandoline or sharp knife, slice the zucchini into 1/4-inch-thick planks. Spread the sliced zucchini on a cutting board, sprinkle with salt, and set aside. If you are making fresh tomato sauce with the recipe linked above, make it while the salt is drawing the excess moisture from the zucchini. After about 15 mins. (during which time you will make the most delicious tomato concoction imaginable), blot the zucchini with a paper towel. Optional but I think really tasty: Heat the grill or grill pan on the stove and grill the zucchini planks for about 5 min. per side until slightly charred. To assemble the lasagne, spread about 1 cup of the tomato sauce in the bottom of the baking dish. Add a single layer of zucchini, spread with half the ricotta, and then sprinkle with half the mozzarella. Repeat this process and then sprinkle with parmesan. Cover with foil and bake for 45 mins. Remove foil, turn up oven to 400 degrees, and cook for another 10-15 mins. until cheese is browned and bubbling. Let stand for at least 5 mins. before cutting.