Healthy Butternut Squash Lasagna – Hearty, roasted butternut squash nestled between layers of lasagna noodles, tender cooked spinach, and cheesy sauce. Less dairy than traditional lasagna but still all of that creamy goodness. Only 300 calories per serving, and one of the easiest recipes you will find for lasagna!
I am obsessed with squash this time of year! Isn’t everybody? It is just so bright and vibrant and packed with incredible flavor. My favorite type of squash is butternut squash which is why I am bringing you this amazing Healthy Butternut Squash Lasagna with Spinach and fresh herbs like sage and rosemary.
The first thing that came to my mind when I tasted this was, this tastes like a warm fall hug. Really! It has all of those wonderful fall flavors like squash, rosemary, and sage all nestled in a warm bed of melty cheese and lasagna noodles. Just heavenly!
Just look at the beautiful pan of deliciousness!!!
What to expect from this amazing lasagna
- Perfectly roasted, buttery-tasting butternut squash
- Soft melty cheese in all the right places
- The perfect mix of herby flavors from fresh rosemary and sage (my fave’s)
- Tender, thin cooked noodles that hold all of the incredible filling together.
- Less dairy than traditional white lasagna, but still all of that creamy goodness.
- One of the easiest butternut squash lasagna recipes I have ever made.
How to make easy Healthy Butternut Squash Lasagna
Slice and roast the squash – You will need a squash that is 1.5-2 lbs. Cut the ends off of the squash, peel it, remove the seeds, and slice it into 1/4 inch size pieces. Lay the squash onto a sprayed baking sheet, drizzle the squash with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and bake for 15 minutes at 425 degrees F. Remove and let cool for a few minutes.
While the squash is roasting, you can make the creamy saucy filling and sauté the spinach.
Sauté the spinach in a skillet on the stove at low-medium heat for a few minutes until it is slightly wilted.
Make the creamy filing – Add some butter to a medium-size saucepan. Once it melts add in the flour (I used whole wheat white flour). Whisk the flour in with the butter for a minute or so, then add in the coconut milk about a 1/2 cup at a time, whisking lightly. Add in the nutmeg and a bay leaf. Simmer on low for 5 minutes or so to thicken the sauce. Remove from the heat. Let it cool for a couple of minutes.
Combine the ricotta with lemon zest, freshly chopped sage and rosemary, parmesan, mozzarella, salt and pepper, and mix.
Time to assemble – the best part!
Reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees F and spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray. Ladle on some of the white cream sauce, enough to cover the bottom of the pan, and add a layer
Next layer on some of the sautéed spinach.
Add some of the ricotta mixture and spread it evenly over the squash and spinach.
Pour some more of the creamy white sauce all over to evenly cover the ricotta mixture. Repeat with one more layer then finish the final layer with lasagna noodles, the remaining creamy white sauce, the remaining cooked spinach and a good sprinkle of parmesan cheese.
Bake for 35 minutes, until the top is nice and golden brown and bubbly. Remove and let cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Slice and serve! Super creamy, but still light and healthy. My new favorite lasagna for fall!
Tips for making this butternut squash lasagna
- Choose a squash with a longer neck since you want long “plank” pieces to layer in the lasagna. You can also just cut large slices of squash if you cannot find one with a long neck.
- No boil lasagna noodles, lentil lasagna noodles, or store-bought lasagna sheets all work well in this recipe. You can also use whole wheat lasagna noodles, but those would need to be boiled first.
- Bake the lasagna uncovered, this allows it to get nice and golden brown on top and all around the edges.
- Let the lasagna cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving. Letting it cool allows the slices to be lifted from the pan easier as well as results in perfectly square pieces of lasagna (see picture above).
Here are some other recipes using butternut squash that you may also like
Instant Pot Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
I hope you try this recipe out! If you do try it, then please leave a comment and rating below.
Healthy Butternut Squash Lasagna
Hearty, roasted butternut squash nestled between layers of lasagna noodles, tender cooked spinach, and cheesy sauce. Less dairy than traditional lasagna but still all of that creamy goodness. One of the easiest recipes you will find for lasagna!
Ingredients
- 1 butternut squash (1.5-2 lbs)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 5 oz fresh spinach
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup whole wheat white flour
- 3 1/2 cups plant based milk - I used 2 cans of full fat coconut milk, poured into a bowl and whisked lightly
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 bay leaf
- 16 oz part-skim ricotta cheese
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated lemon zest
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 teaspoons freshly minced sage
- 1 teaspoon freshly minced rosemary
Instructions
- Cut and roast the squash: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Cut the ends off of the squash, peel it, remove the seeds, and slice it into 1/4 inch size pieces. Lay the squash onto a sprayed baking sheet, drizzle the squash with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and bake for 15 minutes at 425 degrees F. Remove and let cool for a few minutes.
- Sauté the spinach: Heat a skillet to medium heat, and spray the pan with cooking spray. Add the spinach to the pan, toss to cook until slightly wilted. Set aside to cool. You can also you frozen spinach that has been thawed, with the moisture squeezed out or drained.
- Mix up the ricotta filling: Add the ricotta, fresh lemon zest, mozzarella cheese, 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese, the fresh sage and rosemary, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper to a medium size mixing bowl and mix well to combine.
- Make the creamy sauce: Heat up a medium size saucepan to medium heat. Add the butter. Once the butter is melted, add in the flour and whisk for about 1 minute. Slowly add in the milk about a 1/2 cup at a time, continuing to whisk. Sprinkle in the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Add in the bay leaf and let the sauce simmer on low for about 5-7 minutes, lightly whisking while it cooks, to allow it to thicken a little.
- Assemble: Spray a 9x13 lasagna pan with cooking spray, ladle in some of the creamy sauce, enough to cover the bottom of the pan. Layer on some of the lasagna noodles, top the noodles with the slices of sqaush, then some of the spinach, dollop on some of the ricotta mixture and spread it evenly over the squash and spinach, pour more of the creamy sauce over the ricotta mixture, repeat with one more layer. Finish with a final layer of lasagna noodles, the remaining creamy sauce, the remaining sauteed spinach and the parmesan cheese.
- Bake uncovered for 35-40 minutes, until the top is nice and golden brown and the edges are nice and bubbly.
- Remove and let cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Notes
- This lasagna can be assembled ahead, covered and placed in the fridge, then baked when ready to eat.
- You can also freeze this lasagna after it is cooked, defrost in the fridge overnight, and then bake as instructed in the recipe.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 308 Total Fat: 20g Saturated Fat: 13g Trans Fat: 0g Unsaturated Fat: 5g Cholesterol: 38mg Sodium: 330mg Carbohydrates: 21g Net Carbohydrates: 0g Fiber: 2g Sugar: 1g Sugar Alcohols: 0g Protein: 13g
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