This vegetarian lasagna recipe is my favorite dish to make for family and friends! Filled with savory roasted vegetables, it's healthy and delicious.
Vegetarian lasagna was the first big dinner I learned how to make. When I was in college, a vegetable lasagna would always be the main event when I cooked a meal for a group. Fast forward to now, and I still like to make one when I’m serving a crowd, especially around the holidays. A veggie lasagna is comforting, flavorful, and great for making ahead. Plus, who doesn’t love to swap stories at the table over red sauce and pasta?!
I’m sharing my favorite vegetarian lasagna recipe below. It’s savory and satisfying, filled with roasted veggies, creamy ricotta cheese, ruffly noodles, and plenty of marinara sauce. I think you’re going to love it!
How to Make Vegetable Lasagna
My vegetarian lasagna recipe starts with these ingredients:
Vegetarian Lasagna Ingredients
- Fresh veggies, of course! I pack this vegetable lasagna with roasted red bell peppers, zucchini, onions, mushrooms, and baby spinach. They add SO much flavor.
- Lasagna noodles – No-boil noodles seem convenient—but trust me, the regular kind are better. They take less than 10 minutes to cook, and they have a perfect tender texture in the final lasagna.
- Marinara sauce – Make homemade marinara sauce, or use a 24-ounce jar of store-bought sauce. I like Rao’s.
- Ricotta cheese – It creates a creamy, cheesy layer between the noodles, sauce, and veggies. I season it with garlic and lemon zest for bright, savory flavor.
- Shredded pecorino and mozzarella cheese – For topping the lasagna. Not a pecorino person? Parmesan cheese works too!
- And fresh basil and/or parsley – For garnish.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Before you assemble the lasagna, complete these 3 prep steps:
- Roast the veggies. Toss the peppers, zucchini, onions, and mushrooms with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Bake at 425°F until they’re tender and caramelized.
- Boil the noodles until al dente. Toss them with a drizzle of olive oil to prevent sticking!
- Make the ricotta filling. Mix the ricotta cheese with the lemon zest, garlic, salt, and pepper.
You’re ready to layer!
How to Layer Vegetable Lasagna
Start with a 9×13-inch baking dish. Spread 1 cup of the tomato sauce on the bottom.
- Then, add a layer of noodles.
- Top the noodles with half the ricotta mixture.
- Layer half the spinach over the ricotta, and scatter half the roasted vegetables in an even layer.
- Dot the vegetables with 2/3 cup of the marinara sauce.
Repeat the layering process in the same order:
- Noodles
- Ricotta
- Spinach + roasted veggies
- 2/3 cup marinara sauce
Top with a final layer of noodles, the remaining sauce, and the shredded cheese.
That’s it!
How Long to Bake Vegetarian Lasagna
If using fully cooked lasagna noodles: Bake uncovered at 400°F for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is browned and bubbling.
If using no-boil lasagna noodles: Cover the veggie lasagna with aluminum foil. Bake at 400°F for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the noodles are tender. Remove the foil and bake until the cheese is browned and bubbling.
Let the vegetable lasagna stand at room temperature for 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
Variation
To make vegan lasagna: Replace the ricotta mixture with this vegan ricotta. Skip the cheese on top of the lasagna. Bake, covered, until the pasta is tender and the lasagna is heated through, 30 to 50 minutes at 400°F.
What to Serve with Vegetarian Lasagna
This vegetable lasagna recipe is a satisfying meal on its own, but it pairs well with all sorts of side dishes, too!
Serve it with a salad, such as
- this green salad,
- this kale Caesar salad,
- or this chopped salad.
Or pair it with a veggie side dish like
You also can’t go wrong with garlic knots or garlic bread!
Storage and Freezing Instructions
Leftover vegetarian lasagna keeps well in an airtight container or covered dish in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat it in the microwave or a 350°F oven.
To freeze vegetable lasagna: Assemble the lasagna in the baking dish. Cover tightly with foil and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow to defrost overnight in the fridge before baking. When ready to serve, bake, covered, for 20 minutes at 400°F. Uncover and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbling and the lasagna is heated through.
More Veggie Comfort Food Recipes
If you love this vegetarian lasagna, try one of these veggie comfort food recipes next:
Best Vegetarian Lasagna
Equipment
Ingredients
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, stemmed and quartered
- 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 medium zucchini, cut into ½-inch pieces
- ½ medium yellow onion, cut into ½-inch pieces
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 15 lasagna noodles*
- 3 cups marinara sauce, 24 ounces
- 3 cups fresh spinach
- 2 cups grated low-moisture, part-skim mozzarella cheese
- ½ cup grated pecorino cheese
- Fresh basil leaves or chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
Ricotta Filling
- 3 cups whole milk ricotta cheese, 24 ounces
- 3 garlic cloves, grated
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Oil a 9x13-inch baking dish.
- Place the mushrooms, red pepper, zucchini, and onion on the baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss to coat. Spread evenly on the baking sheet and roast for 20 to 25 minutes, or until tender and browned around the edges. Reduce the oven temperature to 400°F.
- Meanwhile, cook the noodles.* Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and prepare the lasagna noodles according to the package instructions, cooking until al dente. Drain and toss with a drizzle of olive oil to prevent sticking.
- Make the ricotta filling: In a large bowl, stir together the ricotta, garlic, lemon zest, salt, and several grinds of pepper.
- Assemble the lasagna. Spread 1 cup of the marinara sauce at the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with a layer of noodles, followed by half the ricotta mixture. Spread the ricotta in an even layer, then arrange half the spinach evenly on top. Top with half the vegetables and dot with ⅔ cup of the remaining marinara sauce.
- Repeat with another layer of noodles, followed by the remaining ricotta, spinach, vegetables, and another ⅔ cup sauce. Top with the remaining noodles.
- Spread the remaining ⅔ cup marinara over the pasta, then evenly sprinkle with the mozzarella and pecorino cheeses. Bake in the 400°F oven for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is browned and bubbling. Let stand for 20 minutes before garnishing with fresh basil or parsley, slicing, and serving.
Notes
- No-boil noodles tend to be shorter than regular lasagna noodles. Instead of counting noodles, expect to use about ¾ of a 1-pound box.
- Change the bake time: Cover the lasagna and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the noodles are tender, then uncover and bake until the cheese is browned and bubbling.
Loved this recipe! Made it for our Christmas dinner at home this year!
Made this for dinner tonight! I loved the combination of roasted veggies, especially the addition of fennel. I used Daiya mozzarella on top to make it vegan, then sprinkled a little Follow Your Heart parmesan on top of that when it was done. Delicious recipe! Thank you.
We love a lasagna on cold winter nights and we loved trying this version and it’s vegan ricotta! So easy to make out of kitchen staples and made me feel a lot better than buying far too much ricotta that just sits in my fridge after lasagna night. Some of these veggies weren’t available at our market but our substitutes still made a hearty layer. Thanks for this refresher!
Super yummy!! LOVED the roasting of veggies – they add so much flavor!!
Loved this lasagne; so good with all the roasted vegetables; didn’t have any fennel but that sounds like it would be extra yummy, will get some fennel and make it again! Kept it vegan by adding vegan parm and mozzarella on top! The tofu ricotta was delicious; would be delish in stuffed shells, too!
Solid recipe! I only tried this recipe as part of the cooking club, and I’m really glad I did. I was skeptical of the tofu even though I love tofu, but I was surprised by how well it worked in the recipe. I didn’t add red onion or garlic, but used some garlic olive oil in place of extra virgin olive oil. The leftovers were even better than the first day. I used oven-ready lentil noodles so I covered the dish with foil & cooked it extra, extra long before adding the cheese – cooked perfectly! Thank you!
This lasagne is so good! The roasted veggies make it delicious and light, it’s perfect in that it’s not a real heavy lasagna. I made a homemade vegan mozzarella cheese to top it, this lasagne is so delicious!
I made the lasagna tonight (vegan, so no dairy cheese on top). Probably the best lasagna I’ve ever had! I loved all the roasted veggies and the tofu ricotta was so yummy!
We are serious runners who could eat more veggies, so I decided to make this for my BF’s birthday. I include his favorites (in eggplant, zucchini and summer squash, shiitakes) and opted for a leek (instead of fennel) to keep it tween-friendly. I roasted the eggplant separately, having sliced it in rounds to make an additional hearty layer. This almost-vegan dinner is satiating and pretty easy on the gut, making it a great choice to fuel your Sunday long run.
Delicious. We’re not vegan, but my daughter is lactose intolerant, so I topped with shredded vegan mozzarella to make this a dairy-free entree. Otherwise, I made this exactly as stated I dislike raw fennel, but love how it sweetens and looses most of its anise flavor when roasted. Will definitely make again. My daughter asked for a tray to freeze to take back to school.
I’ve made many veggie lasagnas before, but the tofu basil ricotta in this one is really something special and makes this recipe my new favorite by far. I skipped the fennel and added eggplant for more of a meaty bite. So satisfying!!
A hearty dish!
I think this would be delicious without the pasta(I am not a huge pasta person) and will try that next time. Love the lemon addition to the “ricotta”;reminds me of the baked ziti which is a family favorite.. I added extra kale for more greens and thus needed more marinara..
This recipe is incredible. My family (including cheese loving boys) loved the tofu ricotta and roasted veggies in this dish! I can’t wait to make it again.
I have to preface this by saying that neither my husband, nor I were big fans of traditional lasagna. Way too much flavorless cheese, and we are also primarily plant-based now, making it particularly tricky to find a lasagna recipe we can eat. When I saw this recipe had a tofu ricotta, I knew we had to try it and it did not disappoint! SO. MUCH. FLAVOR! To make mine completely vegan I used vegan mozzarella and smoked provolone on top. This is something I will be making regularly, and particularly when we have company because it’s so beautiful when it’s all baked in the pan! Thank you Jeanine for such an incredible dish!
Will definitely add this to the winter dinner rotation! The combo of veggies suggested here was absolutely delicious. I actually mixed the ricotta in with the veggies in a bowl so they melded more, and added some additional chopped basil to that mixture. Yum, yum, yum! And used Rao’s sauce – a fave in our house (nothing can go wrong with that sauce).
The ricotta in this recipe was unbelievable!
This recipe was so tasty! I especially loved the addition of roasted vegetables.
Made this minus the mushrooms and was actually impressed with the ‘ricotta’ filling made with tofu/nutritional yeast/lemon. The lemon adds a brightness and I am usually not a fan of the yeast but I didn’t taste it here. Roasting the veggies adds extra flavor and I went with real cheese on top, yum!
I absolutely love this recipe, especially the mushrooms and fennel. We make it at least twice a month and never tire of it.
Just made it last night for my meat-loving husband and he loved it!!
So amazing and i bought gluten free noodles so it wasn’t so heavy.
Loved it!
Shannon M.