Vegetable lasagna is a recipe that gives lots of leeway as far as ingredients and prep time.
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The simplest way to go is just to include a layer of thawed and squeezed frozen spinach between your standard recipe layers.
But if you want a truly veggie-heavy dish, the following recipe makes my current favorite iteration for cold winter days (or spring, summer, or fall days for that matter!).
Tips for Preparing
This vegetable lasagna takes some time to prepare. You can save some time by making the noodles and veggies the day before, or the bechamel sauce earlier in the day and then slowly reheating it to spreading consistency.
To manage the kitchen clutter, I use one pot for all the prep – a large, 6 quart stainless steel stock pot. I clean it out between steps so I won’t feel overwhelmed by a sink full of dishes after I’ve completed the lasagna assembly.
As far as noodles go, the first time I made this recipe I used standard white flour lasagna noodles. The next time, I used whole grain noodles.
Truthfully, I like the subtlety of the white flour noodles but we need the fiber of the whole grain noodles. So I guess you make your choices based on what works best for you.
You can also use precooked lasagna noodles and skip the noodle prep part of the recipe.
In other words, adapt as needed to make this vegetable lasagna a regular part of your meal rotations. You won’t regret the effort!
Notes on Ingredients
9 lasagna noodles – use your favorite, even precooked.
Cheeses – I use fresh-grated parmesan and mozzarella. You can save time by buying these cheeses pre shredded. I’m also thinking about using a cashew based mozzarella next time.
6+ cups of cooked veggies – broccoli, zucchini, onions, mushrooms, peppers, sun-dried tomato, leeks, spinach, fennel, and matchstick carrots are great choices. I use fresh vegetables but if you don’t mind frozen, go for it!
Feel free to substitute a variety of vegetables and varying amounts. You really can’t mess it up unless you put raw veggies in without sauteing off the water per the veggie cooking directions. Failing to cook the broccoli a bit, for example, will lead to a diluted white sauce while the lasagna bakes.
Béchamel sauce – So far, I’ve made the traditional white sauce with butter, milk, and flour; but I’m itching to try out a more plant-based recipe with olive oil and soy milk, like the one here.
Vegetable Lasagna with White Sauce
Ingredients
- 9 lasagna noodles
- 2 Tbsp olive oil divided 1 tbsp.+ 1 tbsp.
- 2 Cloves Garlic
- 1 Leek or 1 c. chopped onion
- 1 large head Broccoli about 2 c. florets
- ½ c. matchstick Carrots
- 1 Zucchini
- 6 oz. fresh Spinach
- 4 tsp Kosher Salt divided 2 tsp. + 2 tsp.
- 1 tsp Oregano
- 4-5 large leaves fresh Basil
- 6 tbsp. Butter
- 6 tbsp. Flour
- 6 c. milk, 2%
- ⅛ tsp Cayenne Pepper or Smoked Paprika
- ¼ tsp. Nutmeg
- 1 ½. c. grated Parmesan
- 1 ½ c. grated Mozzarella
Instructions
Prepare the noodles
- Boil and drain noodles according to package directions.
- Coat the bottom of the lasagna pan with some olive oil or cooking oil spray. Toss lasagna noodles to coat them lightly with oil. Set aside noodles, or refrigerate them for later if you aren’t proceeding through the recipe yet.
Prepare the veggies
- Peel and mince garlic. Trim and cut up onions. Cut the basil into thin slices (Chiffonade). Set aside.
- Trim the root and tough dark green parts of the leek and discard them. Soak the leek in water for a bit and then shake to remove dirt and sand. Chop the leek into 1 inch pieces and put in a large bowl.
- Clean and chop the remaining veggies and add to the leeks in the bowl.
- Heat 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a large skillet. Add onions and cook until they begin to brown. You can add a teaspoon of sugar to enhance the sweetness, if desired.
- Add the garlic and sauté another 30 seconds.
- Add the remaining veggies, 2 tsp. Salt, Oregano, and Basil. Continue sautéing for about 5-10 minutes until softened. Return veggie mixture to bowl and set aside or refrigerate to prepare the lasagna later.
Prepare the White Sauce
- Using a large pot, heat butter over medium until melted and bubbly. Use a whisk to stir in the flour. Cook for about a minute, whisking continuously.
- Whisk in milk about ½ c. at a time, beating to keep sauce smooth. Once all milk is incorporated, continue whisking until the sauce gets a bit thick but try to avoid boiling.
- Remove from heat. Whisk in Cayenne Pepper, 2 tsp. Salt, and Nutmeg. Refrigerate if proceeding with the recipe later. To reheat, put sauce back in the pan and heat on very low, whisking, until sauce can be poured over noodles and veggies.
Assembling the lasagna
- Line up your sauce, noodles, veggies, and cheeses.
- First, spread some white sauce on the bottom of the lasagna pan.
- Lay down 3 noodles.
- Spread ½ of the veggie mixture over the noodles. Top with 1/3 of the cheeses. Spread 1/3 of the white sauce over the veggies and cheeses.
- Lay down 3 more noodles. Spread the remaining veggies over the noodles. Top with another 1/3 of the cheeses. Spread another 1/3 of the white sauce over all.
- For the final layer, lay down the last 3 noodles. Pour over the remaining white sauce. Sprinkle the remaining cheeses on top.
- Cover the pan with foil.
- Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes. Remove foil and bake about 10 more minutes until sauce is bubbly and cheese is golden. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.
