Low-Carb Zucchini Carbonara Cake

This low-carb favourite got a modern makeover today! My fun take on keto carbonara today… in cake form.

When it came perfectly crisp on top out of the oven, and lets be honest… in one piece, I literally squealed with excitement! It’s super easy to make and is one the whole family will enjoy.

Serve as a main dish with a nice salad like our Superfood Low-Carb Veggie Salad Bowl, Easy Low-Carb Tomato Summer Salad or Low-carb Smokey Roasted Mushrooms.

You can also serve this recipe as a side with any protein such as roasted chicken, pan-fried pork chops or baked salmon. Enjoy!

Step-by-step

1. Preheat oven to 160 °C/ 320 °F (fan assisted), or 180 °C/ 355 °F (conventional).

2. Prepare the zoodles but making them in a spiralizer. If you don’t have a spiralizer, you can use a julienne peeler to make long thin zucchini ribbons. Chop the soft cores.

3. Place the noodles in a large bowl or a baking tray. Add the chopped zucchini cores. (Try to keep them in one place as you'll be cooking these first.) Sprinkle the noodles with salt and let them sit for 10 minutes. Use a paper towel to pat them dry and remove excess moisture. Set aside. Alternatively, place in a salad spinner to remove excess moisture.

   

4. Meanwhile, bash the garlic to bruise it, removing the skin to enable the flavour to release. Chop the bacon into about chopped into 2 cm/ 0.8 " pieces.

5. Melt the butter in a non-stick frying pan or cast iron skillet. Add the bacon and garlic and sauté 5 minutes until the bacon is cooked. Discard the garlic.

   

6. Beat the eggs in a bowl with a fork. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cheese keeping about a third aside for the topping.

7. Add the zucchini noodles, bacon mix, cream and egg to a mixing bowl and toss to combine, ensuring all the noodles are fully coated.

   

8. Grease a 19 cm/ 7.5 oz cake tin with a little butter and a small sprinkling of cheese (about 1 tbsp). Add the vegetable mix.

9. Top with the remaining cheese and bake for about 50 minutes, or until firm and golden on top.

   

10. Allow to cool slightly before removing from the tin and slicing.

    

11. Top with freshly chopped parsley or basil. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days.

    

Recipe

Low-Carb Zucchini Carbonara Cake

★★★★★4.6 (146 ratings)

Your favorite Italian restaurant meal made into a tasty low-carb "pasta" casserole. Zucchini noodles baked ...

Hands on

15m

Overall

1h 15m

Servings

4

4.4 g

Net carbs

19.9 g

Protein

41.1 g

Fat

472

kcal

1 serving2 servings3 servings4 servings5 servings6 servings7 servings8 servings9 servings10 servings11 servings12 servings16 servings

US + metricMetricUS

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Ingredients makes 4 servings

• 400 g zucchini, spiralized (14.1 oz)
• 2 tbsp butter, ghee or olive oil (30 ml)
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 140 g bacon, sliced (5 oz)
• 3 large eggs
• ¹/₂ cup grated Gruyere or Pecorino Romano cheese (57 g/ 2 oz)
• ¹/₂ cup grated Parmesan cheese (45 g/ 1.6 oz)
• ²/₃ cups heavy whipping cream (160 ml/ 5.4 fl oz)
• 1 tsp salt, or to taste
• ¹/₂ tsp cracked black pepper, or to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 160 °C/ 320 °F (fan assisted), or 180 °C/ 355 °F (conventional).

2. Prepare the zoodles but making them in a spiralizer. If you don’t have a spiralizer, you can use a julienne peeler to make long thin zucchini ribbons. Chop the soft cores.

3. Place the noodles in a large bowl or a baking tray. Add the chopped zucchini cores. (Try to keep them in one place as you'll be cooking these first.) Sprinkle the noodles with salt and let them sit for 10 minutes. Use a paper towel to pat them dry and remove excess moisture. Set aside. Alternatively, place in a salad spinner to remove excess moisture.

4. Meanwhile, bash the garlic to bruise it, removing the skin to enable the flavour to release. Chop the bacon into about chopped into 2 cm/ 0.8 " pieces.

5. Melt the butter in a non-stick frying pan or cast iron skillet. Add the bacon and garlic and sauté 5 minutes until the bacon is cooked. Discard the garlic.

6. Beat the eggs in a bowl with a fork. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cheese keeping about a third aside for the topping.

7. Add the zucchini noodles, bacon mix, cream and egg to a mixing bowl and toss to combine, ensuring all the noodles are fully coated.

8. Grease a 19 cm/ 7.5 oz cake tin with a little butter and a small sprinkling of cheese (about 1 tbsp). Add the vegetable mix.

9. Top with the remaining cheese and bake for about 50 minutes, or until firm and golden on top.

10. Allow to cool slightly before removing from the tin and slicing.

11. Top with freshly chopped parsley or basil. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Nutrition per serving, ¼ cake

Carbs 4%Protein 17%Fat 79% of calories

Net carbs

4.4 g

Total carbs

5.5 g

Fiber

1.1 g

Sugars

3.8 g

Protein

19.9 g

Fat

41.1 g

Saturated fat

22 g

Calories

472 kcal

Sodium

1,174 mg · 51% RDA

Magnesium

42 mg · 10.4% RDA

Potassium

450 mg · 22.5% EMR

Nutrition by ingredient

Per 1/4 cake	Net carbs	Protein	Fat	kcal
Zucchini (summer squash, courgette)	2.1 g	1.2 g	0.3 g	17
Butter, unsalted, grass-fed	0 g	0.1 g	5.8 g	51
Garlic, fresh	0.5 g	0.1 g	0 g	2
Bacon, streaky (high fat content), organic	0 g	4.8 g	8.8 g	98
Egg, whole, fresh, raw (free-range or organic eggs)	0.3 g	4.7 g	3.6 g	54
Cheese, Swiss , Gruyère	0.1 g	4.2 g	4.5 g	58
Parmesan cheese	0.4 g	4 g	2.9 g	44
Cream, heavy whipping, pouring, full-fat (30-40% fat)	1 g	0.8 g	15.2 g	146
Salt, sea salt	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Pepper, black, spices	0.1 g	0 g	0 g	1
Total	4.4 g	19.9 g	41.1 g	472

Serving size 1/4 cake

• Gluten free
• Nut free
• Nightshade free
• Avocado free
• Coconut free
• Fish free
• Shellfish free
• Beef free