Cauliflower zucchini bake

Ingredients

1 zucchini, chopped

30 oz. cauliflower florets 2 Tbsp avocado oil 1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp  oregano 1/2 tsp basil 1/4 tsp black pepper

1 lb Ground Italian sausage

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes 1 cup uncooked quinoa 30 oz. marinara sauce

8 oz. Mixed Italian shredded cheese, divided in half

Directions

1.Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit

2.Chop up the zucchini into bite size chunks

3. In a 9x13 baking pan coat the cauliflower and zucchini with avocado oil, and add salt, oregano, basil, black pepper.  

4.Bake in oven until it starts to turn golden brown, about 20 minutes

5.While the vegetables are baking, you can cook the sausage. Spray vegetable cooking spray onto a frying pan. Add the ground Italian sausage and red pepper flakes. Cook until the sausage begins to brown. Once cooked, drain the fat from the sausage. Also use paper towels to absorb extra grease from the sausage as it cools.

6. Also while cooking the sausage, you can prepare your quinoa according to the package directions, cooking until the water is absorbed and the kernels are translucent. It should make 3 cups once cooked.

7. Place the quinoa in a medium sized bowl. Add in all of the marinara sauce , ½ of the cheese, and all of the Italian sausage.  Mix it all together.

8.Scoop this sauce mixture onto the vegetables in the 9x13 pan and spread it out evenly across the top.

9.Bake for 15 - 20 min.

11. Top with remaining cheese and finish baking for another 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.

Note: This is a delicious gluten free alternative to using lasagne noodles - (just be certain your marinara sauce is GF).

You can also remove the sausage for a delicious vegetarian dish.

This can be made ahead and warmed the next day for a great quick meal.

Makes great leftovers too.