Full Flavored Vegetable Lasagna
This Vegetable Lasagna is full of flavor and just as satisfying as a meat-based casserole.
Tip On The Best Vegetable Lasagna
Vegetable lasagna has been a challenging dish for me.
It has always tasted a little bland to my tastebuds, and I never looked forward to having any leftovers (a true test if you loved your meal).
I’ve had a hard time figuring out what the issue was, and since it’s an involved dish that takes a good amount of time to put together and cook, I stopped making it.
I had a light-bulb moment when I read a vegetable lasagna recipe from Cook’s Illustrated (September & October, 2011) that described a way to eliminate some of the water the veggies add to the dish.
BLINK-BLINK… THAT was the problem!
The water from the veggies were drowning out the flavors, aka bland, bleh, boring!
Not to mention the soupy consistency when you tried to cut into the lasagna.
Seems silly that I didn’t think of that, but it makes PERFECT sense now!!
I made this last weekend and had it in the oven Monday night, and it was so tasty!
I followed every step and ingredient (minus the olives – see note in recipe).
Veggies have lots of vitamins and basically zero calories, so I didn’t substitute the full-fat ingredients and health-ify the dish any further.
The robust flavors left us satisfied, and wanting leftovers for our lunches!
The no-boil noodles used in this recipe cuts down the cooking time in half, not to mention one less pot to wash 🙂
Vegetable Lasagna Recipe
Ingredients
No-cook Tomato Sauce
- 1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes (I used Muir Glen)
- 1/4 cup fresh basil chopped
- 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
No-cook Cream Sauce
- 2 cups Parmesan cheese grated
- 1 cup whole-milk cottage cheese
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch or arrowroot
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
Vegetable Filling
- 1 1/2 pounds eggplant approximately 7 cups, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 1 pound zucchini approximately 4 cup, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 1 pound yellow squash approximately 4 cups, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme minced
- 12 ounces about 12 cups baby spinach
- 12 no-boil lasagna noodles
- 3 cups whole-milk mozzarella cheese shredded
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 13 x 9 inch baking dish with non-stick spray.
- For the Tomato Sauce: Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.
- For the Cream Sauce: Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.
- For the Filling:Toss eggplant with 1 teaspoon of salt in a large bowl. Line surface of a large baking dish with a double layer of paper towels and lightly spray with non-stick cooking spray. Spread eggplant in an even layer over the paper towels. Microwave eggplant, uncovered, until dry to the touch and slightly shriveled (10 minutes). Toss half way through to ensure eggplant cooks evenly. Let cool sightly and return to large bowl and toss with zucchini and squash.
- Combine 1 tablespoon olive oil, garlic and thyme in small bowl.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat. Add half the vegetable mixture, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, cook stirring occassionally (about 7 minutes) until vegetables are lightly browned. Push vegetables to the side of the skillet and add half of garlic mixture to the clear area and cook until fragrant (30 seconds). Combine into vegetables, and move veggies to a medium sized bowl. Repeat with remaining eggplant mixture, 2 tablespoons oil, and remaining garlic mixture.
- Return skillet to medium-high heat, add an additional teaspoon of oil if needed, and cook spinach just until wilted (3 minutes) transfer spinach to a paper towel-lined plate and let drain. Cover with more paper towels and gently blot the excess water from the spinach. Stir into vegetable mixture.
- Assemble: Spread 1 cup of tomato sauce in the bottom of the baking dish, placing 4 noodles on top of the sauce (overlapping is fine). Spread half of vegetable mixture over noodles, followed by half of the cream sauce, add 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Repeat layering with 4 noodles, 1 cup tomato sauce, remaining vegetables, remaining cream sauce and 1 cup mozzarella. Place last 4 noodle on top layer of cheese. Spread remaining 1 cup of tomato sauce over noodles and sprinkle the remaining 1 cup of mozzarella cheese on top. Lightly spray a large sheet of aluminum foil with non-stick cooking spray and cover lasagna. Bake for about 35 minutes (or until bubbling. Cool on a wire rack 25 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclaimer
Please note that the nutritional information provided are guidelines and may vary based on the brand of products used. For your specific nutritional goals use My Fitness Pal or Verywell Fit recipe calculators. All content within this site is not intended as medical diagnosis or treatment and should not be considered a substitute for professional medical expertise.
You also might want to try these Loaded Eggplant Rounds from Dizzy Busy and Hungry!
At a later date, I may use the tromboncino squash I have in the freezer to make this.
What a treat that will be! You have such a variety of veggies from your harvest!
It’s been ages since I made a veggie lasagne.. this one has so many layers, literally, of different ingredients and flavors. I’m not surprised it was outstanding!
It comes together nicely! Tastes even better the day after!
I’m afraid we ate every last bit 🙂 Thanks for stopping by Joanne!
It’s a keeper! Promise 🙂