Vegetarian Lasagna

Lighten up your lasagna without lightening up the flavor! This Vegetarian Lasagna recipe is filled with zucchini, mushrooms, spinach and ricotta cheese. It’s a wonderful meatless Italian meal that’s sure to be loved by both vegetarians and meat lovers alike!

It’s a versatile meal that’s delicious with a number of different vegetables! And it’s easily made vegan or gluten free!

Can we talk about my love affair with lasagna for a minute? I mean it’s saucy, cheesy, downright delicious comfort food! What’s not to love?!

While I grew up with lasagna filled with meat sauce, I’m now OBSESSED with how seriously scrumptious lasagna filled with vegetable sauce can be!

So how do you make THE BEST vegetable lasagna recipe that’s just as good, maybe even better, than it’s meat-filled counterpart? Just follow my 3 simple secrets!

So what are my 3 secrets for making THE BEST Vegetarian Lasagna at home?

1. Always dice the vegetables into small pieces for an even-textured vegetable sauce!
2. Always drain liquid from the skillet after you’ve sautéed the vegetables! This will prevent a watery vegetable lasagna.
3. Always mix an egg in with your ricotta cheese! The egg will act as a binder for the cheese layer and will give you a creamy, even cheese layer in your lasagna.

Just following these 3 simple secrets will help you create the perfect vegetarian lasagna every time. Want to mix up the veggies based on the season or what you have in your pantry? No problem!

This lasagna recipe is super versatile and will turn out delicious no matter the combination of vegetables that you decide to use!

Ingredients

• Lasagna noodles – I prefer a classic lasagna noodle, but no-boil noodles can also be used to take out a step in the recipe.
• Whole milk ricotta cheese – I highly recommend using ricotta cheese made from whole milk vs. part skin ricotta cheese. It plays an integral role in making the cheesy layers extra creamy! If you’re not a fan of ricotta cheese, you can also use small curd cottage cheese.
• Egg – I also recommend mixing an egg in with the ricotta cheese when making lasagna. This is used as a binder and will help hold the creamy, cheesy layer together.
• Italian seasoning – I prefer to use my homemade Italian seasoning mix (linked here) but you can also purchase Italian seasoning pre-made at the grocery store.
• Low-moisture mozzarella cheese – using low-moisture mozzarella means the lasagna won’t get watery, which is especially important when making vegetable lasagna because vegetables contain a lot of water content.
• Olive oil
• Baby bella mushrooms – or white button mushrooms, whichever you prefer!
• Zucchini – summer squash can also be used in place of, or in addition to zucchini, if you have an abundance during the summer months!
• Onion
• Garlic
• Baby spinach
• Tomato paste – the tomato paste is what helps thicken the sauce and keeps your vegetarian lasagna from falling apart. It also prevents the sauce from being too thin and watery. This is one ingredient that you definitely don’t want to leave out!
• Tomato sauce
• Petite diced tomatoes
• Salt

Instructions

• Prepare the vegetable sauce.
  • Heat olive oil in a large skillet on the stove over medium high heat.
  • Add diced mushrooms, diced zucchini and diced onions, saute for 6-8 minutes.
    • Quick Tip! I highly recommend a small dice for the vegetables to create a perfect texture in the sauce without large chunks of vegetables popping up in the lasagna.
  • After you’ve sauteed the mushrooms, zucchini and onions, drain any liquid from the skillet. This will prevent watery vegetable lasagna, which no one wants!!
  • Place the skillet back on the stove over medium high heat and add minced garlic and spinach to the skillet. Saute for 1-2 minutes.
  • Add tomato paste to the skillet and stir it into the vegetables.
  • Add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning and salt.
  • Bring the sauce to a simmer on the stove, then reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
• Prepare the noodles and cheese.
  • Preheat the oven to 375°F.
  • Bring a large pot of water to boil on the stove, add the lasagna noodles. Cook until al dente, about 4-5 minutes, drain, then set aside.
    • Quick Tip! I recommend laying the cooked & drained noodles out in an even layer on a cutting board so that the noodles do not stick together.
    • Note: you can also skip this step and use no-boil lasagna noodles.
  • In a small bowl, combine ricotta cheese with one egg, Italian seasoning and shredded mozzarella cheese. Set the cheese mixture aside.
  • Once the sauce has cooked down for 20 minutes, begin putting the lasagna together.
• Assemble the lasagna.
  • Place 3 cooked lasagna noodles in the bottom of a 9 inch x 13 inch baking dish.
  • Spread a layer of the ricotta cheese mixture on the noodles.
  • Place a layer of the vegetable sauce on top of the cheese.
  • Layer noodles, ricotta and vegetable sauce 2 more times.
  • Layer the final 3 lasagna noodles on top, then cover the noodles with shredded mozzarella cheese.
• Bake the lasagna.
  • Tent the lasagna with foil and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
  • Remove the foil and continue baking for an additional 15 minutes, or until the cheese becomes brown and bubbly.

Remove from the oven and let rest for 15-20 minutes before slicing. Feel free to top with fresh grated parmesan cheese, crushed red pepper flakes or fresh basil!

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