Creamy Vegetable Lasagna is pure comfort food. This real food version is packed with beautiful green vegetables, tangy lemon, fresh thyme and layered with a buttery cream sauce. It's gluten free with a grain free option too!
There's nothing like homemade cream sauce vegetable lasagna!
Hands down, this is one of my favorite comfort food meals ever. Layers of perfectly cooked pasta, brimming with vegetables and creamy cheesy goodness - how can you go wrong?!
Pasta dishes in general tend to be a sure hit.
Most people simply love pasta. It's one food that is universally known for bringing people together in a cozy, family-style way. Mac and cheese, one pot pastas, spaghetti, fettuccine alfredo, and on and on.
You can load pasta up with light and refreshing flavors, thick meaty sauces or creamy and cheesy sauces. They're all so unique and special, but the foundation is the same.
Lasagna doesn't have to be complicated. It can be simple, bursting with flavor, with just a little hands on prep time.
Spring happens to be on the way here, so I'm craving lots of beautiful spring produce. This delicious vegetable lasagna is chock-full of asparagus, fennel and leeks. Fresh lemon and vibrant thyme really help bring out the natural sweet flavors of all of the vegetables.
Lasagna wouldn't be the same without cheese, so this one is loaded with several different kinds. Ricotta cheese, aged cheddar and parmigiano-reggiano are the stars.
A luscious, refreshing homemade sauce brings the whole meal together. Similar to a classic mornay sauce, it's made with buttery and slightly nutty Gruyère cheese and bursting with lemon flavor. It also happens to be grain free!
To make this vegetable lasagna, you'll need some gluten free or grain free lasagna noodles {see recipe for my favorite choices}. They get a quick bath in some sea salted boiling water then cooled before handling.
While your pasta is cooking or cooling, get your homemade white sauce going. It's really easy to make. You'll start with some healthy fat and some of my favorite grain free flour to make a simple roux, then you'll add some milk {preferably raw, organic or grass-fed} and thicken the sauce. Finish off the creamy goodness with Gruyère, fresh lemon zest and lemon juice. This sauce is bliss!
Next up get some healthy fat into a pan and sauté some garlic, leeks and fennel for a few minutes. Then set them aside to cool off just a bit.
After those easy steps, all that's left is the assembly. You'll layer everything into a casserole pan and top it off with some shredded cheese. Then pop it into the oven and let the magic begin.
When the top is lightly golden brown and the edges are perfectly crispy, the lasagna is done and ready to get in your belly.
Show your loved ones how much they mean to you by nourishing them with this cozy, delectable meal.
This crowd-pleasing meal is wonderful for a make-ahead weeknight meal and lovely to serve to guests.
Creamy Vegetable Lasagna
Creamy Vegetable Lasagna {Gluten Free + Grain Free Option}
Creamy Vegetable Lasagna is pure comfort food. This real food version is packed with beautiful green vegetables, tangy lemon, fresh thyme and layered with a buttery cream sauce. It's gluten free with a grain free option too!
Ingredients
- 1 small bunch asparagus, chopped into small pieces
- 1 small fennel bulb, cut in half and sliced into small pieces
- 1 small leek, white part only - thinly sliced
- 4 fresh garlic cloves, finely minced
- 2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon Celtic sea salt, divided (<-- this is my favorite sea salt)
- 5 tablespoon grass-fed butter or ghee, divided
- 3 tablespoon Otto's cassava flour (<-- this is the only cassava flour I use and recommend)
- 2 ¾ cups raw/organic/grass-fed milk
- ½ cup shredded Gruyère cheese
- Zest of 2 organic lemons
- Juice of 1 small lemon
- 15 oz organic ricotta cheese
- 1 cup shredded organic aged cheddar cheese
- 1 cup shredded organic mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup shredded organic parmigiano-reggiano cheese
- 1 package gluten free lasagna noodles or grain free lasagna noodles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375* F. Grease a 9x13 casserole dish and set aside.
- Prep your asparagus and set aside.
- In a saucepan melt 2 tablespoons healthy fat of choice over medium-high heat. Add fennel, leek, garlic, thyme and ¼ teaspoon sea salt, sautéing for about 5 minutes or just until soft and fragrant. Set aside to cool.
- In a small saucepan, make the homemade white sauce. Add 3 tablespoons healthy fat of choice and melt over medium-high heat. Once the fat has melted add the cassava flour whisking constantly for 1-2 minutes. Slowly add the milk and ¾ teaspoon sea salt, whisking frequently until sauce begins to thicken, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and add whisk in lemon zest, lemon juice and Gruyère cheese.
- In a bowl combine ricotta, cheddar and mozzarella shredded cheeses. Set aside.
- Cover the bottom of the greased casserole dish with about 1 cup of sauce. Add 4 uncooked lasagna noodles {see notes if you're using a pasta that needed to be boiled first} on top of the sauce. Spread about ½ cup of the cheese mixture on top of the noodles. Evenly spread about ⅓ of the sautéed veggie mixture and the chopped asparagus over the cheese. Top with another 4 lasagna noodles and repeat the above process until all noodles are used - the last layer should only be sauce on top of the noodles, then topped with the parmigiano-reggiano cheese.
- Bake for 45 to 50 minutes until the cheese on the top is light golden brown and the edges are bubbly and light golden brown.
- Let rest for 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
- If you'd like to make a traditional boil and bake lasagna, boil the noodles for 4 minutes prior to lasagna assembly.
- For a grain free option: I love using these grain free lasagna sheets.
- If you wanted to make this dairy free, there are lots of wonderful dairy-free cashew and almond based cheeses on the market now. I have seen several that are even cultured! Try replacing the cheeses with dairy-free cheese of choice. For the ricotta cheese layer, try replacing with a cashew cheese spread (they sell cultured ones at my local natural foods grocery store). The white sauce would need a bit of altering to make it dairy free - and I have not attempted that yet. You could try making a white sauce with a roux like above - but you would need to replace the butter with ghee or avocado oil. You would also need to substitute the milk with a dairy-free milk and omit the cheese.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 325Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 69mgSodium: 617mgCarbohydrates: 16gFiber: 1gSugar: 2gProtein: 17g
This nutritional information was auto-generated based on serving size, number of servings, and typical information for the ingredients listed. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in a given recipe, please calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients and amounts used, using your preferred nutrition calculator. Under no circumstances shall the this website and the author be responsible for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on the given nutritional information. You are solely responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information provided is accurate, complete, and useful.
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Renee
This is just lovely Emily! We are seeing some asparagus from southern states coming here and ours will be ready in May so I can't wait to make this!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Oh fun!!! So happy that it's coming your way and I love that you have some growing too! 🙂
Rebecca Strength and Sunshine
Great way to pack in extra veggies!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks Rebecca! 🙂
Raia
Wow! I love how much you packed in this dish, Emily! It's gorgeous and sounds absolutely delicious. 🙂
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks so much Raia! 🙂
Michele
Oh this looks so good and creamy! I wish we could do gruyere, I sure do love that cheese. But I'll have to attempt the dairy-free version and let you know how it comes out!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Please do! I'd love to know how it turns out 🙂
linda
Emily this looks absolutely heavenly! Love the lemon sliced on top. What creamy dreamy comfort food!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks so much Linda! The lemon flavor is so yummy 🙂
Megan marlowe
I love how how cheesy this lasagna is and the addition of gruyere sounds delicious. I also love all the spring time veggies. Such a perfect lasagna!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks so much Megan! Gruyere is such a lovely cheese, isn't it? 🙂
Mira
You had me at fennel!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
🙂 I love fennel too!
Carol Little R.H.
Delightful recipe!
All of my favourite flavours in this one.
Can't wait to make it.
Thanks!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks so much Carol! 🙂
Elaina Newton
This looks fabulous, Emily! I have a soft spot for veggie lasagna with white sauce, but have only ever eaten frozen versions from the store. I would love to make this with my little sister so we can enjoy it together. 🙂
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks Elaina! I grew up with the frozen versions too ... and I crave the white sauce type lasagnas, so I'm always trying to come up with new versions. I hope you get to make some! 🙂
Stacey Crawford
This will be perfect for meatless Mondays. I can't wait to it!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Yes! Great idea! Thanks Stacey 🙂
Melissa - MyDarlaClementine
So excited to try this recipe out. Lasagna is my husband's favorite meal, but we hardly ever make it since going Gluten Free and low grain. This will be such a nice treat!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
I hope you get to make some Melissa! 🙂
Megan Stevens
LOVE this Emily-- all that creamy goodness. Love the butter, thyme and lemon!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thank you Megan xo I know you appreciate that creamy goodness 🙂
Cristina Curp
This is such a beautiful and elegant lasagna. Perfect for spring. Yum!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks so much Cristina! 🙂
Jessica DeMay
Now you have me craving lasagna! I love your version full of spring veggies. This looks amazing!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks Jessica! I'm all about spring veggies this time of the year 🙂
Kari
This looks so decadent and comforting, yet still filled with plenty of healthy veggies!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
🙂 thanks Kari!
Rachel
Have you tried Capello's lasagna sheets? Pricey but soooooo good.
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Yep! They're awesome. That's what I linked to in the recipe 😉
ChihYu
This dish looks SO GOOD ! I want to dive right in !
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks so much ChihYu! 🙂
Katja
OK.... now I'm hungry! Love all the veggies in this dish!!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
🙂 thanks Katja!
Carrie Forrest
What a great recipe. This looks as good as it must taste!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks so much Carrie! 🙂
Hannah Healy
Wow! What a great way to use spring veggies. Thanks for inspiration!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks Hannah! 🙂
Vanessa Woozley
Full of goodness, you've reminded me to make some, I haven't had lasagne in years!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
I hope you get to make some soon Vanessa! 🙂
Georgina
You've got all of my fave veggies and cheeses in here - it's like you've made a dish just for me ha! I LOVE it!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
LOL 🙂 that's awesome! xo
Becky Winkler
Yum, love that there's asparagus in here!!!
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks Becky! I'm kind of obsessed with asparagus when spring starts 🙂
Anya
You know I'm a sucker for good cheese and vegetables. This lasagna is so drool-worthy.
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
🙂 yes! Thanks so much Anya xo
Resep Neti
Looks so delicious with a lot of cheese on top, i think i can't stand to try this recipe. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri
Thanks so much Resep. I hope you get to try some. 🙂
Gina
This looks super tasty. I have never made white sauce lasagna. It looks like a good way to get a few extra veggies in. I just happen to have a larger container of heavy cream to use up