When I first made this vegetable lasagna I knew I had to share it with you on my site! It may not be the fastest recipe, but after all, most lasagnas aren’t. However, it is easy to make and is perfect for a nice Sunday meal or even during the holidays like Easter.
This recipe uses common vegetables found at grocery stores making it accessible and convenient. Let’s get started!
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Recipe Summary
This lasagna serves 6 people and takes approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes which includes the cooking time. In summary, the recipe requires sautéing the vegetables and layering them between the noodles along with the white sauce, and cheese.
This lasagna also uses a béchamel sauce, which if you’ve never created one, it’s super easy and I’ll explain more below. So don’t fret – but please remember this recipe cannot be rushed.
Ingredients
For this recipe you just need a few simple ingredients.
Lasagna ingredients:
- Lasagna noodles (enough for 3 layers in a 13×11 baking dish). Please read my notes if using homemade noodles.
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Onion cut into thin slices about 1 inch in length
- Zucchini cut in thin slices, or half moon slices if the zucchini is very large.
- Sweet peppers chopped into thin slices
- Carrot cut in thin slices or half moons if it’s very large
- Ricotta – whole milk is best
- Mozzarella – fresh or shredded store-bought is fine.
- Romano Pecorino (you can substitute with Parmesan if that’s all you have).
- Salt & pepper
Pro Tip: You can use homemade pasta lasagna noodles from a hand crank machine, or you can use store-bought. If using homemade noodles where they are very thin, you do not need to pre-boil them.
Béchamel Sauce
- Unsalted butter
- Flour
- Whole milk (I have never tried it with low fat or skim milk)
Equipment Needed
- large saute pan – you’ll have lots of veggies which will cook down. If the pan is too small, use a lid like I did for even cooking.
- medium saucepan – this is for the béchamel sauce
- 13×11 baking pan
Step by Step Instructions
For exact measurements check out the recipe card below. These steps will explain what’s involved in making this delicious Italian recipe.
Step 1. Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat.
Step 2. Add the onion, stir to coat with the oil, then saute for about a minute.
Step 3. Add the zucchini and saute until they cook down a bit.
Step 4. Next add the carrots, sweet peppers, along with the salt and cracked black pepper. Stir to coat, cover with a lid, and saute over low-medium heat for about 30 minutes until all vegetables are very soft.
Pro Tip: If the vegetables are not cooking down enough, increase heat to medium, but make sure nothing burns. Do not drain any excess liquid, we will use it in the lasagna.
Step 5. Meanwhile, cook lasagna noodles according to package instructions. Then drain and run under cold water to make handling easier.
Pro Tip: I like to keep the noodles in some water until I’m ready to use, otherwise they will start to stick together and tear.
Now we’re going to create the béchamel sauce.
Step 6. In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over a low heat.
Step 7. Once melted, add a little bit of the flour at a time, using a whisk to blend until all the flour is used and it’s like a thick paste.
Step 8. Slowly add in the milk, and continuously whisk the sauce to avoid any clumps from forming.
Step 9. Increase the heat to medium and bring the milk mixture to a low boil. Do not stop stirring! Stir for 1-2 minutes longer or until the sauce has thickened (like a gravy thickness).
Pro Tip: If the sauce ends up having some lumps from the flour that you can’t get rid of, you can strain the lumps out.
Now we’re going to create the lasagna.
Step 10. In the baking pan, spread a layer of the sauce on the bottom of the pan. Then layer in the following order:
- sauce
- noodles
- sauce
- veggies
- cheeses
- noodles
- repeat until you end up with the last layer of noodles on top, then top the lasagna with the remaining béchamel sauce.
Pro tip: You can also can mix the three cheeses (ricotta, mozzarella, Romano) together in a bowl first if you want, or layer them individually. I’ve done both methods.
Step 11. Bake in the preheated oven at 350F (175C) for 45 minutes or until it is bubbling inside and the noodles are very soft.
Step 12. Remove from oven and let rest for 15 minutes. This will solidify the sauce and the cheeses making it easier to cut and keep its form. Otherwise it will be too soupy.
PRO TIP: I have found that by letting it sit for at least 15 minutes, actually helps the flavors come out more. I don’t know why this is, but it is true.
Recipe Video
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Recipe Tips & Modifications
- Try topping with breadcrumbs before baking.
- Add some chopped asparagus, broccoli, or mushrooms to the veggie mix. Broccoli and zucchini go great together by the way.
- Add fresh basil leaves (torn into pieces) with the vegetables.
- You do not need all three cheeses, but I love this combo.
Storage
This white lasagna can be stored in the fridge for 3-4 days. It can also be frozen in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To thaw, take out the night before and reheat at 350F for 20- 30 minutes or until heated through. If reheating just an individual serving, I place it in a pan over low heat covered with a lid. Then let it heat through by adding a drop of water.
What Goes with a Veggie Lasagna
Here are some ideas for what to serve with this meal. You can also view our larger collection of Italian side dishes.
Stuffed mushrooms with breadcrumbs, cheese and seasonings.
Simple Italian green salad is always a winner, especially with a heavy meal like this one.
Sauted Italian green beans. Easy to make and easy to reheat. You can buy these in the frozen section of grocery stores, but not all stores carry these flat green beans.
Additional Meal Recipes
For more inspiration, check out these recipe collections below.
- Discover more easy Pasta recipes for additional inspiration.
- Check out these Mediterranean Diet recipes.
- Planning a Christmas holiday party? Try these Christmas buffet ideas.
Recipe Card
Vegetable Lasagna
Equipment
- large saute pan
- Medium sauce pan
- 13×11 baking pan
Ingredients
- 1 lb Lasagna noodles enough for 3 layers in a 13×11 baking dish
- 3 Tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 Onion cut into thin slices about 1 inch in length
- 3 Zucchini cut in thin slices or half moon slices if the zucchini is very large.
- 2 Sweet peppers chopped into small thin pieces (not long slices)
- 1 Carrot cut in thin slices or half moons if it's very large
- 2 Cups Ricotta whole milk
- 1 Cup Mozzarella shredded
- 1 Cup Romano Pecorino grated. you can substitute with Parmesan if that's all you have.
- dash Salt
- dash Cracked black pepper
Béchamel Sauce
- 5 Tbsp Unsalted butter
- 1/2 Cup Flour (approx 70g)
- 4 Cups Whole milk I have never tried it with low fat or skim milk
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat.
- Add the onion, stir to coat with the oil, then saute for about a minute.
- Add the zucchini and saute until they cook down a bit – about 3 minutes.
- Next add the carrots, sweet peppers, along with the salt and cracked black pepper. Stir to coat, cover with a lid, and saute over low-medium heat for about 30 minutes until all vegetables are very soft.
- Meanwhile, cook lasagna noodles according to package instructions. Then drain and run under cold water to make handling easier.
- Now we’re going to create the béchamel sauce.
- In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over a low heat.
- Once melted, add a little bit of the flour at a time, using a whisk to blend until all the flour is used and it’s like a thick paste.
- Slowly add in the milk, and continuously whisk the sauce to avoid any clumps from forming.
- Increase the heat to medium and bring the milk mixture to a low boil. Do not stop stirring! Stir for 1-2 minutes longer or until the sauce has thickened (like a gravy thickness).
- Pro Tip: If the sauce ends up having some lumps from the flour that you can’t get rid of, you can strain the lumps out.
- Now we’re going to create the lasagna.
- Step 9. In the baking pan, spread a layer of the sauce on the bottom of the pan. Then layer in the following order:-sauce– noodles– sauce again-veggies– cheeses– then repeat with noodles, sauce, cheeses until you end up with the last layer of noodles on top, then top the lasagna with the remaining béchamel sauce.
- Pro tip: You can also can mix the three cheeses (ricotta, mozzarella, Romano) together in a bowl first if you want, or layer them individually. I've done both methods.
- Bake in the preheated oven at 350F (175C) for 45 minutes or until it is bubbling inside and the noodles are very soft.
- Remove from oven and let rest for 15 minutes. This will solidify the sauce and the cheeses making it easier to cut and keep its form. Otherwise it will be too so
Video
Notes
- this recipe is very dense and filling!
- it goes great with a salad and bread
Nutrition
I hope you’ve enjoyed this recipe! If you’ve tried it and made any changes to make it your own (or kept it all the same), let me know in the comments below!
Liz
