Delicious Vegetable Lasagna

For this vegetable lasagna, peppers, onions, spinach, carrots, and zucchini lay nestled between blankets of pasta, bechamel sauce, and cheese for a truly satisfying dinner.

I had been a fool for far too long. I used to think that vegetable lasagna was a fake lasagna. I mean, no beef??? But it wasn’t until I tried a friend’s recipe for a vegetarian version that I realized my ignorance. How could I have been so foolish? Of course, any lasagna dish (or any dish, in general) that features bell peppers, spinach, onions, carrots, and zucchini is going to taste amazing. I know that now. Back in the day? Not so much.

Then there’s the sauce. Marinara is a must. But what does it for this particular dish is the bechamel sauce. It makes for a rich meal that will have you forgetting about the ground beef the second it hits your tongue. Enjoy!

Why You Will Love This Recipe 

• This is a great vegetarian version of a classic lasagna. You won’t miss the meat, I mean it. What’s more, you will have something to serve your vegetarian friends should they come over for dinner.
• It is an awesome way to get your kids to eat their veggies because the marinara and bechamel sauces do a great job of masking any tastes they may find off-putting.
• This freezes really well. Make it one day when you have time (or double/triple up on the recipe) and pop it in the freezer until there comes a day when you’re in a rush and need to put a healthy dinner on the table.
• Bechamel sauce doesn’t get used enough in my house so any time I can cook a meal that requires it, I jump at the opportunity. The texture is divine!

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 8

Ingredients

I’ve split the ingredients up into their components. The bechamel sauce, though it sounds foreign and exotic, is pretty straightforward to make. You could probably make it without even going to the store!

The Vegetables:

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 3 carrots
• 3 small orange/red bell peppers, or 1 large one
• 5 small zucchini
• ¼ tsp salt
• 5-6 oz baby spinach

The Bechamel Sauce:

• 4 tbsp butter
• 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 2 cups full-fat milk
• ¼ tsp salt

Other Ingredients:

• 2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
• 1 can marinara sauce
• 8 lasagna sheets

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F
• Chop all the vegetables up. You can use a food processor or buy a pre-diced packet of vegetables.

• In a pan over MEDIUM heat, add the olive oil, onions, and garlic. Fry for 5 minutes. Add the rest of the vegetables and the salt. Fry, tossing every few minutes until they are soft.

• In a small pot over LOW heat, melt the butter, then whisk in the flour until it forms a smooth paste. Slowly add in the milk, whisking constantly until it thickens but is still pourable. Immediately remove from the heat.

• Make a layer of vegetables on the bottom of the dish, then pour on half the marinara, then layer on 4 pieces of lasagna, then half the bechamel sauce. Repeat this process once more. Sprinkle the grated cheese on top.

• Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese bubbles and a little browned on top.

Serving Suggestions

Sweet & Simple Honey Bread: Don’t think, because it’s a honey bread, that it is too sweet to accompany this lasagna. What little sweetness it contains would go well with the bechamel sauce anyways.

Creamy Cucumber Salad: So easy to make and a very light side dish, which you might appreciate if you find all the pasta in the lasagna to be a bit heavy on your stomach.

Italian Bean Soup with Sausage: If you want meat in your meal but don’t want to adjust this lasagna, why not add this soup to the menu? It contains sausage and continues the Italian theme began by the lasagna!

FAQs

How to Store Vegetable Lasagna

First, let the lasagna cool completely. Cover it with aluminum foil or plastic wrap then store in the fridge where it will keep for up to four days. As mentioned, it can also be stored in the freezer for up to three months. Cover it with both the plastic wrap and aluminum to prevent freezer burn. When you’d like to eat the lasagna, you can do it either in the oven (cover with aluminum foil and cook for 20-30 minutes at 350°F) or the microwave (cover with a damp cloth to prevent drying it out and heat for 3-4 minutes).