Best Vegetable Lasagna
Seriously the best veggie lasagna! This meatless lasagna recipe is packed with bell pepper, zucchini and carrots, sautéed until golden on the edges.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 29, 2024
I set out to create the best vegetable lasagna recipe. Here it is! This vegetarian lasagna is cheesy (of course), and loaded with vegetables, spinach and a simple tomato sauce.
If you have any meatless-meal skeptics in your life, this lasagna will change their mind. I’m sure of it.
This lasagna is based on my spinach artichoke lasagna on the blog and the roasted eggplant lasagna in my cookbook. I love those less-conventional vegetarian lasagnas.
Yet, I wanted to offer a classic vegetable lasagna suitable for holidays and weeknights, and this is it. The tomato sauce is the same across all three recipes, but the vegetables vary.
For this recipe, you’ll chop bell pepper, zucchini and carrot into very small pieces and sauté them until they’re nice and golden on the edges. That caramelization brings out so much more flavor. Then, add spinach to the skillet and cooked it down for a few minutes so it doesn’t get too soggy.
The Best Vegetable Lasagna
Five reasons to love this recipe:
- You can easily adjust the vegetables to suit the seasons or your pantry (see recipe notes).
- The sauce is made from scratch with basic ingredients. It only takes a few minutes to make.
- Use no-boil noodles and you don’t have to bother cooking them. Just layer them up!
- I recommend cottage cheese instead of ricotta, which has more protein and flavor (trust me).
- You can even make this recipe gluten free and/or vegan. See the recipe notes for details.
The end result is a super flavorful, nutrient-dense, veggie-packed lasagna. This lasagna might not be the quickest weeknight option around, but it is a reasonably simple recipe that will absolutely satisfy your comfort food cravings.
Enjoy, and please let me know how this recipe turns out for you in the comments! Your feedback is so important to me.
Craving more vegetable-packed casseroles? Here are more of my favorites:
- Baked Ziti with Roasted Vegetables
- Lentil Baked Ziti
- Better Broccoli Casserole
- Roasted Veggie Enchilada Casserole
Watch How to Make Vegetable Lasagna
Best Vegetable Lasagna
Seriously the best veggie lasagna! This lasagna recipe is packed with bell pepper, zucchini and carrots, sautéed until golden and tender on the edges. Recipe yields one 9-inch lasagna, enough for 8 slices.
Ingredients
Veggies and spinach
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 large carrots, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 medium zucchini, chopped
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 5 to 6 ounces baby spinach
Tomato sauce (or substitute 2 cups prepared marinara sauce)
- 1 large can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes
- ¼ cup roughly chopped fresh basil + additional for garnish
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Remaining ingredients
- 2 cups (16 ounces) low-fat cottage cheese, divided
- ¼ teaspoon salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 9 no-boil lasagna noodles*
- 8 ounces (2 cups) freshly grated low-moisture, part-skim mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
- To prepare the veggies: In a large skillet over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Once shimmering, add the carrots, bell pepper, zucchini, yellow onion, and salt. Cook, stirring every couple of minutes, until the veggies are golden on the edges, about 8 to 12 minutes.
- Add a few large handfuls of spinach. Cook, stirring frequently, until the spinach has wilted. Repeat with remaining spinach and cook until all of the spinach has wilted, about 3 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and set aside.
- Meanwhile, to prepare the tomato sauce: Pour the tomatoes into a mesh sieve or fine colander and drain off the excess juice for a minute. Then, transfer the drained tomatoes to the bowl of a food processor. Add the basil, olive oil, garlic, salt, and red pepper flakes.
- Pulse the mixture about 10 times, until the tomatoes have broken down to an easily spreadable consistency. Pour the mixture into a bowl for later (you should have a little over 2 cups sauce). Rinse out the food processor and return it to the machine.
- Pour half of the cottage cheese (1 cup) into the processor and blend it until smooth, about 1 minute. Transfer the mixture to large mixing bowl. No need to rinse out the bowl of the food processor this time; just put it back onto the machine because you’ll need it later.
- Transfer the cooked veggies and spinach mixture to the bowl of the food processor. Pulse until they are more finely chopped (but not puréed!), about 5 to 7 times, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of whipped cottage cheese. Top with the remaining cottage cheese, then add ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt (to taste) and lots of freshly ground black pepper. Stir to combine. Now it’s lasagna assembly time!
- Spread ½ cup tomato sauce evenly over the bottom of a 9” by 9” baking dish. Layer 3 lasagna noodles on top (snap off their ends to fit, and/or overlap their edges as necessary). Spread half of the cottage cheese mixture evenly over the noodles. Top with ¾ cup tomato sauce, then sprinkle ½ cup shredded cheese on top.
- Top with 3 more noodles, followed by the remaining cottage cheese mixture (we’re skipping the tomato sauce in this layer.) Sprinkle ½ cup shredded cheese on top.
- Top with 3 more noodles, then spread ¾ cup tomato sauce over the top (you may have a little sauce leftover) to evenly cover the noodles. Sprinkle evenly with 1 cup shredded cheese.
- Wrap a sheet of parchment paper or foil around the top of the lasagna (don’t let it come into contact with the cheese). Bake, covered, for 18 minutes, then remove the cover, rotate the pan by 180° and continue cooking for about 10 to 15 more minutes, until the top is turning spotty brown.
- Remove from oven and let the lasagna cool for 15 to 20 minutes, so it has time to set and cool down to a reasonable temperature. Sprinkle additional basil over the top, then slice and serve.
Notes
*Lasagna noodle recommendations: I like to use DeLallo’s Whole Wheat Lasagna Noodles (affiliate link) and Whole Foods’ 365 No-Boil Lasagna Noodles. See below for gluten-free suggestions.
Change it up: Feel free to play around with the vegetables here. You’ll want to use about 3 cups chopped veggies total (excluding the onion). Mushrooms or butternut squash might be nice!
Make it gluten free: Substitute gluten-free lasagna noodles. Choose no-boil (oven ready) noodles if possible; if not, cook them according to package directions. (Fair warning, I tried using DeBoles brand of no-bake lasagna noodles and they weren’t done cooking in the time specified here. Reheated leftovers were ok, though.)
Make it dairy free/vegan: Double the recipe for my vegan sour cream (also available in my cookbook, page 217) and use 2 cups instead of the cottage cheese. Skip the step where you would blend the cottage cheese and just barely blend the spinach/veggies into the sour cream. Omit the mozzarella and use all of the tomato sauce for the final layer. Serve the lasagna with a dollop of additional sour cream on top or, better yet, my basil pesto.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Made this quite a few times now and everyone loves it. We add whatever veggies we have on hand. Today we had sweet potato and butternut squash instead of carrots. To make it less work, I usually double up on the veggies and freeze half before cooking.
Incredible lasagna! I appreciate the tip about cooking Gluten free noodles for longer – I left it in another ten minutes and it came out perfect.
Only changes I made: ricotta instead of cottage cheese, home grown tomatoes instead of canned, and i added a little red wine to the sauce. Flavorful, tender, delicious!
Thank you for sharing, Atlas!
This is the best vegetarian lasagne. Everyone in my family uses it. The prep time, including doing the dishes, is more like 2 hours start to finish. But it’s worth it!
I’m glad you love it, Margaret!
While this recipe is delicious, it took me an hour longer than you quoted. I was cooking for my husband and my toddler so the extra delay was stressful. My half asleep toddler definitely still found it delicious!
That’s great to hear, Holly!
Thank you this is a great recipe. How many days in advance can it be made/baked before eating.
I don’t recommend leaving it uncooked as I find it releases liquid. However, others have tried it and didn’t mind the results. I find it is great leftover, though!
This recipe rocks! I have made it 3 or 4 times. Meat eaters love it too. I have used jarred tomato sauce (Michael’s of Brooklyn) to save time and it’s still great. I use more mozzarella on top than called for – that’s just personal preference. Overall a very healthful and delicious and fairly easy meal.
Great to hear, Tracy! Thank you for your review.
This is my go-to lasagna recipe. I make it in a 9×13 pan. I make it in advance and freeze when I’m expecting a crowd for dinner. I thaw overnight in the fridge and bake until warmed through, covered for part of the recooking time, sometimes adding a little more shredded cheese. I like it better than the traditional ricotta cheese.
Thank you, Sheila! I was wondering if I could make this ahead of company and freeze! I appreciate your note!
Hi,
When you make it in a 9×13 pan, do you double or triple the vegetable lasagna recipe?
Thanks so much!
Lynne
I have made this a couple of times and love it.
I have a busy 10 days ahead of me, and I plan on freezing. Should I cook before freezing or cook from frozen?
I find it is best right away. I would suggest see what others prefer in the comments. I know readers have done it both ways. Please be sure to report back on your results!
Yes I agree! Eat it fresh baked. I froze it and it tasted a bit dryer and the pasta on top got leathery. It still tasted good but not as good as fresh baked
Can it be frozen after cooking? If so, how would you recommend reheating? I’ll be short on time the day I plan on serving.
Thanks, Kate! I love cooking. Mostly, I go from my own knowledge, esp. with meat or fish. I often go to your site for the delish veg recipes. You’re generally pretty good with time allotments but this one threw me. Once organized and prepped, it was bang-on.
Anyhow, keep up the great work.
Looking forward to making this for company at the cottage this week but one question please to clarify this measurement noted in instructions: “8 ounces (2 cups) freshly grated mozzarella cheese”. Since one cup is equal to 8 ounces, I’m confused as to your reference of “8 ounces / 2 cups of mozzarella”. Do we want to measure out one cup(8 ounces) or two cups (16 ounces) of mozzarella? Thank you.
The mozzarella measurement is based on volume, not weight.
1 cup of cheese weighs 4 ounces on a food scale so 2 measuring cups of cheese will weigh 8 ounces, as the recipe states
can you make and freeze ahead.
Hi Nancy, I know others have tried it and didn’t mind the results. I find it best right away.
My (adult) daughter and friends made this for a group of people. It was good but quite soupy. I don’t know why.
Maybe they processed the veg too long
Hi Kate , how much of this recipe can be prepped and frozen ahead of time?
I recommend this best right away. Others have tried it frozen and didn’t mind the results.
Love this recipe!
I add a package of ground vegetable protein to the sauce mixture for some extra protein – and I add a little more tomato sauce so the mixture isn’t dry as the protein will absorb some of it. My meat loving family likes this recipe too!
I just took this out of the oven and cooled it long enough to set then had the most scrumptious tasting veggie lasagne I’ve ever tasted and/or made!!!! Thank you for this amazing recipe! I followed it more closely than I do most….but I used whatever vegetables that were in my garden and diced and sauteed them until caramelized but not cooked through. I love that they retained a slight chew to them, not mushy just pure YUM !
Great to hear, Val!
oops forgot to leave a rating with my comment!!!!
This is my go-to lasagna recipe! I made this last night for my boyfriend’s family, who usually base their meals heavily around meat and it was such a hit. I used ricotta because cottage cheese really freaks me out and it was fantastic. Thank you so much for sharing your recipes, I always know I can count on them to be excellent.
Hooray! I love to hear that, Sarah.
I’ve been making this recipe for a few years now and it NEVER disappoints! Meat eaters and vegetarians agree this is one of the best lasagnas they’ve ever had. I’ve done both the fresh tomato sauce and Rao’s jarred and it’s delicious both ways. Although a bit time consuming and tricky to manage in a tiny NyC studio apartment kitchen it is SO WORTH IT. Leftovers for days and it gets better over time. Couldn’t recommend enough.
This was was fantastic! I added some herbs (oregano, basil and mushroom powder) to the veg when cooking down and subbed half the onion for a shallot. the tomato sauce was perfect! My partner loves meat lasagna and he said he prefers this one! It is much lighter than normal lasagna!
I’ve made this recipe for the first time tonight for just me and my partner and he told me it was my best dish of all time. And he is a meat eater so I guess it says it all. Don’t ask me how but we ended up eating half of the whole plate: it was so SO good.
I used arrabbiata sauce instead since I couldn’t find marinara sauce at the store. I also put a bit more seasoning on the veggie sauce (here, cumin, paprika and cardamom) and it was really nice.
Thank you (from France ) for the recipe, I will definitely do it again!
That’s great to hear Léa! Thank you for your review.
I followed your recipe the first time except I used kale instead of spinach since that’s what I had; the 2nd time I used frozen home-made tomato sauce that needed using up. I doubled the recipe both times and it was fantastic. Everyone loved it and said you don’t even miss the meat! Delicious comfort food, perfect for the fall and winter season. Thanks again, Kate!
Hi Kate , how much of this recipe can be prepped and frozen ahead of time?
Could I use a 9 x 11 pan? Thanks
You could try it. Let me know what you think!
Really enjoyed this! I’ve made other vegetable lasagna recipes but this one is waaaay better. Liked the choice to use cottage cheese and mixing the veggies and cheese together made this as easy as lasagna could ever get.
Looooovved the Vegetable Lasagna recipe! Had our church group over tonight and they all raved about it!
I made a side meatballs with sauce in case the men needed a little more!!
I added Boursin garlic herb cheese to cottage cheese for more flavor! It added a lot of flavor! I made it a day ahead time so the flavors could meld together!
Hubby who loves meat says it was the best lasagna he has ever had!
Thanks Kate!
Love all your recipes ❤️
I make this recipe ALL THE TIME — it’s even my meat-loving son’s favorite version! I’m hoping to pre it tomorrow to cook for Saturday night. Would you suggest baking it tomorrow and re-heating on Saturday, or should I refrigerate it uncooked until Saturday? Thank you!!
Delicious!! My family enjoyed this recipe. We decided not to puree the veggies and ended up using the entire 24 oz Rao’s marinara sauce. The hardest part was waiting 20 minutes for the lasagna to set. Thanks for sharing
This recipe really IS the best, but my only warning is that the prep time was well over an hour (it was not a quick meal, but it was delicious). If anyone is interested, I chose to boil regular lasagna noodles, did NOT snap off ends, and used a 9×13 pan. Worked perfectly. I did not have to adjust any ratios or change anything else :)
Hi is one can tomatoes enough to make the sauce for this recipe, going to try. Making it for tea tonight
Love this! My recent go-to is no-boil lasagne noodles, so thank you Kate! The one thing I always do is ricotta mixed with parsley instead of cottage cheese. My mom made lasagne once when I was a wee girl, and I cried when I saw the cottage cheese! I should also add that I make no-meat lasagne almost every time, and my vegetarian friends rave about it! here, here!
You’re welcome, Julie!
This vegetable lasagna recipe looks so delicious and wholesome! I love how packed it is with fresh veggies and spinach. Thank you for sharing!
How many days ahead of time can you make this to serve fresh?
Thanks.
I recommend to make and serve right awway. Although this is good leftover.
This was outstanding and will be my forever go-to lasagna recipe. I’m hoping you can answer my question before the holidays. What is the best way to reheat this for a large gathering?
You can reheat in the oven. I hope it’s a hit!
I absolutely adore this recipe. I was wondering if it would work as a free form baked penne pasta? I can’t get whole grain lasagna sheets where I live in Australia but I can get whole grain penne which I would prefer to use for health reasons.
Hi Kate. I love this recipe. I no longer eat meat and wanted something flavorful, filling, and festive that would rival my family’s traditional thanksgiving table. I can always count on you because your recipes never steer me wrong! I could only get my mom to try it though. No worries while everyone was stuffing themselves with turkey and all the trimmings, I was toe tapping enjoying my one dish delight.
Do you think black beans would be good in this lasagne instead of the zucchini? If so, how much would you put in it. I’m making it again on this Thanksgiving.
Hi Kate. Thank you, I love this recipe. I no longer eat meat and wanted something flavorful, filling, and festive that would rival my family’s traditional thanksgiving table. I can always count on you because your recipes never steer me wrong! I could only get my mom to try it though. No worries while everyone was stuffing themselves with turkey and all the trimmings, I was toe tapping enjoying my one dish delight.
Do you think black beans would be good in this lasagne as a variation, instead of the zucchini? If so, how much would you put in it. I’m making it again on this Thanksgiving. I hope you have wonderful holiday!
I haven’t tried it, sorry! What did you think?
I’m excited to try this tonight. Will the 1x recipe work in a 9×13 pan as is, or should I double the recipe?
Made this for Thanksgiving and my kids (7 & 4) loved it! I didn’t exactly measure my veggies and think the balance of veg-to-cheese was heavy on the vegetables. So I did add an egg to try and counterbalance for extra water or runniness. Also used fresh mozzarella. Both modifications worked out great and I will definitely save this recipe!
I love to hear that, Whitney!
I making it right now. Sounds wonderful but I’m wondering what the reserved tomato sauce is used for and whether it should just be added in with the rest of the sauce.
Thanks@
I’m hosting a dinner party. Can I make this the day before and leave in the fridge overnight to bake the next day?
I recommend making it right away, but others have tried it and didn’t mind the results.
Delicious!!! I was a little intimidated by this recipe! I am glad that I got over that and fixed it. Your veggie lasagna recipe was delicious and makes great work lunch leftovers. Thank you for creating this recipe and sharing it with your fans!
Kate,
This was a delicious recipe. My grand kids don’t eat veggies so this was perfect and they loved it. It did take me a while to prepare. I found the 9” pan too small and it needed extra sauce. Transferred to a larger pans and still came to the upper edge.overall a wonderful recipe and will make many times again.
HI
I JUST MADE THIS AND PUT IN A 2ND ONE ITS GREAT !!!
ANY HINTS FOR FREEZING/REHEATING?
thanks
I’ve made this recipe several times when hosting vegetarian friends. I use gluten free lentil lasagna noodles. It never fails to impress. The cottage cheese makes the difference. Thanks!
You’re welcome, Mel.
Thank you so much for this lasagna recipe, it really is the Best vegetarian version I ever tasted, so yummy .
I see you can freeze it which is great but can you just keep it in the fridge overnight? Do the noodles get too soggy? I have made this recipe a lot but served it the same day I would like to meal prep it for later in the week??
So delicious! I used roasted garlic that I had and fire roasted tomatoes on accident, but it was a good accident.
This was delicious! I decided to make the vegetable/cottage cheese filling the day before, and then assembled a few hours before baking the lasagna.
Used Simple Truth organic marina (the whole jar, which is 2.5 cups!) to make sure I had enough liquid so my lasagna noodles were cooked enough. I used Rummo lasagna noodles, which you can either parboil , but I did not cook ahead of time. Added about 6 minutes to my cooking time as my ingredients were all cold. Good Culture cottage cheese 2% tasted great, and used freshly shredded mozzarella as encouraged.
Turned out beautifully. Big hit with everyone! I used a traditional lasagna ceramic dish which was 10 x 7- this worked great as the noodles fit in there perfectly. Was enough to feed 4 hungry gals and have about 4 portions left as leftovers.
For the first time making, my prep time took a WHILE! Lots of veg chopping and then watching the skillet, different steps with food processor. I think next time will be much quicker.
Thanks again for a special fun recipe Kate!
Thank you for this recipe. I have made it before and it was delicious. I want to make this today, Saturday, to serve Monday when I will be short on time. Can I assemble it today and bake it Monday?
This sounds great! Can you assemble it the day before and bake the day of? I’m planning it for Christmas evening, but will need to prep it all the day before.
I just popped this in the oven for Christmas Eve. I will be freezing it after it cools.
When I reheat it what temperature and for how long should it reheat? I have a vegan coming so want to make something special.
I have some food allergies myself especially with red sauce. Do you have a white sauce I could try without onions and garlic ?
The recipe sound amazing cant wait to her how they like it. I will give it 5* for the preparation as I cannot sample it. Easy pesy.
Cheryl
This recipe is delicious and easy to make!!! I’ve already made it 3 times and it’s a highly requested meal. I used half ricotta and half cottage cheese because I love ricotta. I also omitted bell peppers and used squash instead. I also felt like the recipe was lacking garlic, so I added a good amount to the vegetables while sautéing and it added even more flavor. I also used a canned vodka pasta sauce as I didn’t feel like making it homemade. Overall, this is definitely the best lasagna i’ve ever had and will be making it forever.
This was absolutely delicious! I finished it in half a day. I have never used cottage cheese in a lasagna recipe, and I was amazed at how wonderful the cheese/vegetable filling was! I had to stop myself from eating it as is so that I could use it in the lasagna. Will be making this more frequently!