Butternut Squash, Zucchini, and Spinach Lasagna. One of my most popular recipes, this delicious vegetarian recipe is rich, creamy, packed with healthy vegetables and loved by even the pickiest of eaters! This Butternut Squash Lasagna is one you will want to make again and again!
Butternut squash recipes abound here on The Forked Spoon and include these reader favorites- Butternut Squash and Black Bean Tacos, Chicken, Cauliflower, and Butternut Squash Skillet Alfredo Pie, and Spicy Thai Pumpkin and Butternut Squash Ramen with Chicken.
This Butternut Squash, Zucchini, and Spinach Lasagna may very well go down as my all-time favorite recipe. It’s rich, it’s creamy, it’s loaded with awesome flavor, and it’s completely vegetarian.
This Butternut Squash Lasagna helped me love lasagna again.
INGREDIENTS IN THIS BUTTERNUT SQUASH LASAGNA RECIPE
This magical pan filled with roasted butternut squash, cheese and vegetables are pretty basic. So don’t let the long list of ingredients and instructions scare you- there’s nothing crazy going on.
- Butternut squash
- Ricotta cheese
- Garlic
- Milk
- Spinach
- …more ricotta
- Mozzarella cheese
- Fresh basil
- Zucchini
- No-boil lasagna noodles
- …more mozzarella
- Parmesan cheese
- Salt, Pepper, and a teeny tiny bit of nutmeg
TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST BUTTERNUT SQUASH, ZUCCHINI, AND SPINACH LASAGNA
- You’ll see in the recipe card that you may use either roasted butternut squash OR canned butternut squash. Truth be told, I have made this butternut squash lasagna recipe both ways and each method tastes wonderful. Anytime you use roasted anything (compared to jarred or steamed) it will have more flavor, and in the case of butternut squash, taste a little richer. If you have the extra time, roast it. If you don’t, then used canned butternut squash (or pumpkin). My guess is that most people won’t notice.
- The cheese. This delicious lasagna simply oozes with cheese. After all, it’s a lasagna and most lasagnas come with loads of cheese. Don’t skimp on the cheese. If you’re really worried, use half full-fat ricotta and half fat-free ricotta. But honestly, simply enjoy it for what it is because it is so good.
- A ton of spinach does not go a long way. Whether you decide to use fresh spinach and steam it yourself, or purchase frozen spinach and thaw it before use, whatever amount you have probably isn’t that much. In this case, allow your eyes to be bigger than your stomach.
- Also…remove every last drop of excess water from the steamed/thawed spinach as you possibly can. Soggy lasagna is just not very good.
- Cover the butternut squash lasagna in a foil tent for the first half of baking to avoid burning and drying out the top part of the lasagna.
- On the flip side, set your oven to broil for 5 minutes before removing from the oven to get a perfectly golden, bubbly top.
- To make this butternut squash lasagna gluten-free, swap out regular lasagna noodles for rice noodles.
- Speaking of noodles, I highly suggest no-boil lasagna noodle sheets. It’s one less moving part.
HOW DO YOU COOK BUTTERNUT SQUASH?
I wrote entire posts on how to cook butternut squash, acorn squash, and spaghetti squash. But, if you’re just looking for an overview,
There are several different ways to cook butternut squash for this Butternut Squash, Zucchini, and Spinach Lasagna-
- Roast
- Steam
- Microwave
Generally speaking, however, when it comes to soups, stews, and lasagnas, I like to roast butternut squash. Why? Well, if I’m going to go through the work of cutting and peeling this giant squash, it needs to bring something more to the table than a can of the stuff would.
You can roast a butternut squash halved, skin on, seeds removed and brushed with olive oil, OR, you may peel, scoop, chop, and bake.
I like both methods.
In this particular butternut squash recipe, I chose the latter.
How to roast butternut squash
- Set oven to 400 degrees F.
- Peel, seed, and chop your butternut squash into equal size cubes.
- Transfer butternut squash to a large baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil.
- Bake for approximately 25 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and eat!
- jk…you’re going to need those beauties.
IS THIS BUTTERNUT SQUASH LASAGNA HEALTHY?
This was the first question my husband asked when I served this Butternut Squash, Zucchini, and Spinach Lasagna recipe several years ago. Typically I serve healthy or healthy-ish meals, so he was probably trying to mentally prepare himself for my “healthified” lasagna creation.
Originally I wasn’t sure how to answer his question, but then, after making this Butternut Squash Spinach Lasagna Recipe many times since, I have concluded that this vegetarian lasagna is neither healthy nor unhealthy.
In other words, I can’t answer this question. Only you can.
For my body, this lasagna recipe provides loads of protein and vegetables, which makes it an absolute keeper.
Unlike traditional meat-filled lasagnas, this one is filled with additional cheese and vegetables, and instead of all the noodles, I halved the pasta and replaced them with zucchini noodles.
If, however, you are sensitive to dairy or simply trying to remove dairy from your diet, then it’s probably best to avoid this dish.
EQUIPMENT NEEDED TO MAKE THIS BUTTERNUT SQUASH LASAGNA RECIPE
Fortunately, you don’t need much to make this Butternut Squash and Spinach Lasagna, but you will need-
- Baking sheets
- Food processor or Blender
- Fine mesh strainer to get ALL that water from the spinach
- Vegetable Peeler
- Large mixing bowls
- Large casserole/lasagna pan
BUTTERNUT SQUASH LASAGNA VARIATIONS
There are all kinds of ways you can modify this recipe to make it your own. Here are some of my favorites I’m looking forward to testing.
- Kale instead of spinach- if you do this, make sure to remove the woody stems and use the leaves only.
- If you’re a meat lover, add some ground Italian sausage (omg so good) or shredded chicken.
- Mix up the cheese. Ever heard of 4 or 5 cheese pizza? yea, you can do that here too.
- Incorporate other vegetables. Mushrooms would probably be my number one pick.
- Top with your favorite marinara. Or, add marinara sauce between layers. I can’t say for sure if everyone would like this, but it’s my own personal favorite.
- Skip pasta noodles altogether and use only zucchini noodles.
- Add some chunks of roasted butternut squash for a more textured squash lasagna.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH BUTTERNUT SQUASH LASAGNA?
Personally, I like to just eat a big plate of this awesome lasagna. But, if you’re planning to serve this to a party larger than one, here are some ideas to get you started.
- Salad. You can never go wrong with a good salad. This Spinach, Pear, and Feta Salad and Autumn Apple Salad with Poppyseed Dressing would be a couple top picks.
- Simple side vegetables such as Roasted Carrots with Lemon Tahini Sauce (minus the tahini sauce), Oven Roasted Green Beans with Almonds, or Sautéed Brussels Sprouts.
- Bread. and butter. because carbs.
CAN YOU FREEZE THIS BUTTERNUT SQUASH, ZUCCHINI, AND SPINACH LASAGNA?
I would be a big fat liar if I told you that this was a fast recipe thrown together in 10 minutes.
Butternut squash lasagna, as with most lasagna recipes, is a process. You’ll probably have a messy kitchen…I know I know I’m so sorry.
BUT, it’s 100% worth it.
My advice? Double the recipe and freeze the extra. This recipe freezes easily and reheats beautifully. Or, MEAL PREP!
This Butternut Squash, Zucchini, and Spinach Lasagna is the gift that keeps on giving…
If you try cooking this Butternut Squash Lasagna, please leave me a comment and let me know! I always love to hear your thoughts.
For more butternut squash recipes check out,
- Butternut Squash Chia Pudding
- Herb Roasted Butternut Squash
- Chicken, Cauliflower and Butternut Squash Skillet Alfredo Pie
- Spicy Thai Pumpkin and Butternut Squash Ramen with Chicken
- Butternut Squash and Cauliflower Mac-n-Cheese
- Sweet Potato, Banana and Butternut Squash Muffins
- Chicken and Butternut Squash
- Pork Chops with Apples
…and many many more.
DON’T FORGET TO PIN THIS BUTTERNUT SQUASH LASAGNA RECIPE TO PREPARE FOR FAMILY AND FRIENDS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON OR WHENEVER YOU FEEL LIKE ENJOYING A DELICIOUS BUTTERNUT SQUASH RECIPE.
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BUTTERNUT SQUASH, ZUCCHINI, AND SPINACH LASAGNA
Ingredients
BUTTERNUT SQUASH FILLING
- Butternut squash puree , from 1 large or two small roasted butternut squash or 3 cans
- 1.5 cups ricotta cheese
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cups milk, more if needed
- 1/4 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
SPINACH RICOTTA FILLING
- 48 ounce frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed of all extra water
- 1.5 cups ricotta cheese
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese
- 1/4 cup chopped basil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Pepper
OTHER
- 3 zucchini, sliced into 1/8" thick noodles
- 10+ sheets no-boil lasagna noodles, or lasagna noodle of choice
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, for the top
- Fresh basil, for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
FOR THE BUTTERNUT SQUASH FILLING
- Roast and puree your own butternut squash, (see how to here) or buy it canned from the market. If neither are available to you, pureed pumpkin is another great option.
- Place the cooked (or canned) butternut squash, ricotta, garlic, milk, salt + pepper, and nutmeg in the bowl of a large food processor. Puree until completely smooth. Add more milk if needed- you want the butternut squash filling to be thick and creamy, but not runny. Season to taste.
FOR THE SPINACH RICOTTA MIX
- Remove excess water from the thawed spinach; you can do this using a mesh wire strainer, cheesecloth, or tea cloth. Transfer the spinach to a large mixing bowl with the ricotta cheese, mozzarella, fresh chopped basil, salt and pepper. Mix until fully combined.
PUTTING IT TOGETHER
- Prepare your baking dish (I usually use a large, deep casserole dish, 12.38"L x 9.25"W x 2"H, but the one shown in the images is slightly larger). Spray dish with non-stick cooking spray of choice.
- Spread 1/3 of the butternut squash filling on the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle with a thin layer of mozzarella cheese and cover with a single, non-overlapping layer of no-boil lasagna noodles (approx. 5). Gently spread half the spinach mixture over the noodles and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Top with a layer of sliced zucchini*
- (REPEAT) Spread 1/3 of the butternut squash mixture over the sliced zucchini layer. Sprinkle with a light layer of mozzarella cheese and top with a single, non-overlapping layer of no-boil lasagna noodles (approx. 5). Spread the second half of the spinach mixture on top of the lasagna noodles. Top with mozzarella cheese and top with a layer of sliced zucchini.
- Spread the remaining 1/3 of the butternut squash filling over the zucchini and sprinkle with grated Parmesan and mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle fresh basil leaves on top of the cheese.
- Cover the baking dish with a large foil "tent" and bake for approximately 20-30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to cook for an additional 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and golden.
- Top with additional fresh basil, if desired.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Just made this tonight, so delicious! I didn’t have a mandoline, so I grated the zucchini and combined it with a spinach mixture. Thanks for the recipe!
LOVELY recipe but 2 16 oz bags of spinach and "2 cloves of fresh garlic"? LOL! I totally enjoyed making this but I used an abundance of garlic cloves and it was absolutely delicious. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!
Could you use fresh spinach?
Hi! I am making this for an Aunt who is GF…do you think this would work with any GF noodles? I know GF is intimidating (for me) and can be tricky! 🙂 Thank you for the recipe!
Hi Andrea! Thank you so much for reaching out 🙂 To be honest, I don’t know a whole lot about GF products, so I can’t say with 100% certainty how it would turn out. I would assume, however, that it would taste just fine. If you’re really worried, you can always replace the noodles with all zucchini 🙂 Hope this helps! Cheers!
Wow! This was a real hit for Christmas dinner. In a panic I realized I didn’t have nutmeg so used ginger and clove instead. Forgot to put the fresh basil on top the last fifteen minutes but will remember the next time. It was outstanding. Thanks for this and other great recipes.
Could you use fresh spinach?
If not using no boil noodles would you precook the pasta?
Hi Michelle, yes, I would precook the pasta. However, since they will continue to cook when the lasagna is baked, take cake to cook until just al dente. Hope this helps 🙂
Great, thanks! Can’t wait to try this tonight!!!
FYI- I precooked Organic Brown Rice Lasagna Noodles for approx 10 mins and it worked perfect! I substituted for part skim cheeses and absolutely loved it! Meal prep for lunches for this week is done. Thanks a bunch!!
Hey Michelle,
I was wanting to make a double recipe and pop one if the freezer for another time. Have you done this before?
Sorry Jessica definently just looked at the last comment and thought that was you name lol
I made it for lunch today and loved it! Made half the recipe. Had cottage cheese on hand instead of ricota and used spelt rotini in place of noodles.
My visiting son really liked it. He said it would be good for breakfast since he is allergic to eggs.
Great recipe! I used gluten-free lasagna noodles, used the mandolin to thinly slice the zucchini, and roasted my own butternut squash. I also used part-skim ricotta since I was using full-fat mozzarella and parmigiana (so guilty!!); it turned out really delicious. Wasn’t overly filling, yet extremely satisfying. Only change I may make next time is adding crushed red pepper in there somewhere. Thanks for a wonderful recipe!