Mom's Easy Cheesy Zucchini Casserole

It was always a good day when my mom whipped up her famous zucchini casserole—aka “zucchini kugel” in our house. This cozy summer side dish is simple: layers of fresh zucchini, melty mozzarella, parmesan and fresh parsley topped with buttery breadcrumbs then baked to golden perfection. Easy, nostalgic, and downright delish with your fave grilled main!

Nothing screams summer louder than my mom’s legendary zucchini kugel. (TBH she made it year-round). This cheesy, crispy, golden masterpiece graced our table approximately a million times growing up—and honestly, we couldn’t get enough. Still can’t.

We’re talking mountains of fresh zucchini, loads of melty cheese, crispy breadcrumbs, and a pop of fresh parsley. SO simple, and so good. What could possibly be better? It's worth turning on the oven for, I swear.

Let's make it!

Casserole. Kugel. Whatever it is, you're gonna want seconds and thirds.

Mom's Easy Cheesy Zucchini Casserole

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 2 reviews

• Author: Alexis Joseph, MS, RD
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 50 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 6 pieces
• Category: Side Dishes
• Method: Oven
• Cuisine: American
• Diet: Vegetarian

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Description

It was always a good day when my mom whipped up her famous zucchini casserole—aka “zucchini kugel” in our house. This cozy, 5-ingredient side dish is so simple: layers of fresh zucchini, melty mozzarella, and parmesan topped with buttery breadcrumbs and baked to golden perfection. Easy, nostalgic, and downright delish with grilled chicken or your fave summer main!

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 4 medium zucchini, peeled and sliced into ½ inch rounds
• ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 8 oz shredded mozzarella cheese (2 cups)
• ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
• kosher salt, to taste
• ½ cup seasoned bread crumbs (I use Italian-style)
• 2 tbsp butter

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Place olive oil in an 8x8 inch baking dish and swirl around to cover the bottom.
2. Place about a third of the zucchini in baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with ⅔ cup mozzarella, 1 ½ tbsp parmesan, a heaping tbsp of parsley, and a good pinch of salt. Repeat two more times to make 3 layers.
3. Place butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl and heat in 30 second increments, until melted (or you can melt pot on the stove). Stir bread crumbs into melted butter. Sprinkle mixture evenly on top of casserole.
4. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until golden brown. You can also broil it for the last couple minutes for an extra crispy topping. Slice into squares and devour! (If you have an air fryer, I love reheating leftovers in there to crisp it up).

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Notes

This is my mom's recipe, which she adapted from The Cleveland Ballet Cookbook.

Smaller zucchini are more flavorful; we don't want those huge ones here!

My mom dotted the mixture with butter per the photos, but I found in recipe testing that melting it better distributed the flavor into the breadcrumbs.