Veggie lasagna with white sauce is a rich and comforting way to eat your veggies! This recipe is easy to customize with the vegetables you have on hand and fancy enough for a special occasion. You'll love how delicious it is to have white sauce on lasagna!
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We're in the depths of the coldest weeks of the year, and I think that calls for a little comfort food.
Of course my style is to throw a ton of veggies into my comfort food. That way you're still getting lots of nutrients to fight off those winter germs while still eating a LOT of cheese. I feel like I could have actually called this green lasagna because I naturally gravitated towards filling it with green veggies.
We've done vegetable lasagna before, but this one is a little different because it uses white sauce instead of marinara. What you're left with is like the pasta version of my alfredo pizza. A creamy bechamel sauce, lots of cheese, and plenty of savory veggies.
Ingredients
- Lasagna noodles
- Butter
- All purpose flour
- Milk
- Heavy cream
- Italian seasoning
- Onion powder
- Garlic powder
- Nutmeg
- Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Olive oil
- Yellow onion
- Zucchini
- Broccoli florets
- Garlic
- Baby spinach
- Canned baby artichoke hearts in water
- Whole milk ricotta cheese
- Mozzarella cheese
- Fresh parsley, optional
- Crushed red pepper flakes, optional
How to make white lasagna
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Coat a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
- Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions. Drain the noodles in a colander and rinse with cold water.
- While the noodles are cooking, prepare the sauce and vegetables.
- In a medium pot, melt the butter.
- Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. The flour should sizzle and begin to turn a pale brown color.
- Slowly whisk in the milk and cream.
- Stir in Italian seasoning, onion powder, garlic powder, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Allow this to simmer for 5-10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and stir in ½ cup of Parmesan cheese.
- Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add the onion and zucchini and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes or until softened.
- Add the broccoli and cook for 2 minutes more.
- Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
- Add the spinach and artichokes and stir until heated through. Remove from the heat and adjust the seasoning as needed.
- To assemble the lasagna, spread ⅓ cup of sauce in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Add 3-4 lasagna noodles, then spread ⅓ of the ricotta cheese over the top. Scatter ⅓ of the vegetable mixture over this and sprinkle with ¼ of the mozzarella. Add a layer of sauce and repeat these layers two more times. Finish with a layer of lasagna noodles topped with the remaining sauce and cheeses.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until hot, bubbly, and lightly browned on top. Let the lasagna rest for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
Top tips
Cook the veggies first
Whether you're making this recipe as written or adding in your own favorite veggies, make sure you cook the vegetables before adding them to the lasagna. Some vegetables release more water than others when cooked, so cooking them ahead of time will keep your lasagna from becoming watery.
How to layer a lasagna
Here's how to layer a lasagna for the best proportions and to help it hold together:
- Sauce
- Noodles (3-4)
- Ricotta
- Vegetables
- Cheese
- Repeat
You should have three of these layer sets. Finish it off with a final layer of noodles topped with the remaining sauce and cheese.
Make ahead
You can assemble this lasagna and keep it covered and refrigerated until ready to bake up to 3 days in advance. Allow it to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before baking. You may want to add a few minutes to the baking time if it is still cold in the middle.
What to serve with white lasagna
- Garlic Butter Breadsticks
- Garlic Bread Baguette
- The Best Easy Vegan Salad
- Summer Salad with Fruit
- Panzanella Salad
How to store lasagna with white sauce
Leftovers can be kept covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can freeze leftovers or the whole lasagna before or after baking for up to 4 weeks. If baking or reheating from frozen, allow the lasagna to thaw in the refrigerator overnight before baking as directed, adding a few extra minutes to ensure it is warm throughout.
Tips for customizing veggie lasagna with white sauce
- Swap the homemade white sauce for a jar or two of store bought white or red sauce
- Use whatever cooked veggies you have on hand such as corn, mushrooms, or bell peppers
- Instead of mozzarella, try provolone, asiago, fontina, or a combination of cheeses
- Make it spicy by adding up to 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes with the other seasonings in the sauce
- Skip the garlic powder in the sauce and cook 1 tablespoon of minced fresh garlic for 1 minute in the butter before adding the flour
- Add a can of rinsed and drained white beans to the cooked veggies, or meat eaters can add cooked chicken for additional protein
FAQ
This is a bechamel sauce made from milk thickened with a roux (a flour and fat mixture). It is seasoned with onion, garlic, and Italian seasoning.
There is a lot of dairy in this recipe, but if you have a favorite vegan ricotta, white sauce, and cheese that you enjoy you could definitely make those swaps to make it vegan.
Yes, you would just need to purchase gluten free lasagna noodles instead of the regular kind. You would also need to swap the flour for cornstarch.
Not all parmesan cheese is vegetarian. Real Parmesan cheese is made with animal rennet. If this is important to you, look for a parmesan cheese made with vegetable rennet instead.
More pasta recipes
- Spaghetti with Chickpeas
- Sun Dried Tomato Pasta Salad
- Halloumi Pasta
- Halloumi Stroganoff
- Penne al Pomodoro
- Spaghetti Arrabbiata
- Tomato and Feta Pasta
- Baked Ravioli
- Easy Fettuccine Alfredo
- Spaghetti Aglio Olio
- Pesto Linguine
- Roasted Vegetable Lasagna
- Roasted Garlic and Broccoli Pasta
- Olive Oil Alfredo Sauce
- Halloumi Carbonara
- Meatless Baked Ziti
If you make this recipe, be sure to rate it, leave a comment, or tag #theliveinkitchen on Instagram!
Recipe
Veggie Lasagna with White Sauce
Ingredients
- 16 lasagna noodles
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 4 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 ½ cups 2% milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¾ teaspoon onion powder
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
- Pinch of nutmeg
- Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 zucchini, diced
- 1 ½ cups broccoli florets, cut to bite size pieces
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
- 14 ounces canned baby artichoke hearts in water, quartered
- 8 ounces whole milk ricotta cheese
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- Fresh parsley, optional, for garnish
- Crushed red pepper flakes, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Coat a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook lasagna noodles according to package directions. Drain the noodles in a colander and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking and prevent them from sticking together.
- While the noodles are cooking, prepare the sauce and vegetables.
- In a medium pot, melt the butter over medium heat.
- Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. The flour should sizzle and begin to turn a pale brown color.
- Slowly whisk in the milk and cream.
- Add the Italian seasoning, onion powder, garlic powder, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Allow this to simmer for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until hot and thickened.
- Remove from the heat and stir in ½ cup of Parmesan cheese.
- Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add the onion and zucchini and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until softened.
- Add the broccoli and cook for 2 minutes more.
- Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
- Add the spinach and artichokes and stir until heated through. Remove from the heat and adjust the seasoning as needed.
- To assemble the lasagna, spread ⅓ cup of sauce in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Add 3-4 lasagna noodles, then spread ⅓ of the ricotta cheese over the top. Scatter ⅓ of the vegetable mixture over this and sprinkle with ¼ of the mozzarella. Add a layer of sauce and repeat these layers two more times. Finish with a layer of lasagna noodles topped with the remaining sauce and cheeses.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until hot, bubbly, and lightly browned on top. Let the lasagna rest for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
Notes
Tips for customizing veggie lasagna with white sauce
-
- Swap the homemade white sauce for a jar or two of store bought white or red sauce
-
- Use whatever cooked veggies you have on hand such as corn, mushrooms, or bell peppers
-
- Instead of mozzarella, try provolone, asiago, fontina, or a combination of cheeses
-
- Make it spicy by adding up to 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes with the other seasonings in the sauce
-
- Skip the garlic powder in the sauce and cook 1 tablespoon of minced fresh garlic for 1 minute in the butter before adding the flour
-
- Add a can of rinsed and drained white beans to the cooked veggies, or meat eaters can add cooked chicken for additional protein
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