Vegetarian Spinach Lasagna With Leeks and Peppers
Aysel is a London-based food creator who loves developing her own recipes and creating delicious, healthy, and approachable meals. Her goal is to show that healthy eating doesn't have to mean sacrificing flavor, and to inspire more people to enjoy cooking at home.
- Dinner
Around two and a half pounds of spinach under a lighter béchamel, at 453 calories a serving.
This spinach lasagna is a vegetarian dinner at about 453 calories a serving, and the vegetables carry most of the dish. Around two and a half pounds of spinach cook down with sweet leeks and bell peppers until the moisture has gone, which is what keeps the layers from turning watery later on. The béchamel is built lighter than usual, with less butter and less cheese, and it still comes out creamy enough to soften the sheets as everything bakes. Layers of pasta, vegetables, sauce, and mozzarella go in together and come out golden and bubbling. Serve it with a fresh green salad for a meat-free dinner that feeds six.
Why This Works
Spinach is the nutritional backbone here, bringing fiber along with folate, and leaning on vegetables rather than butter and cheese is what keeps this lighter than a standard lasagna. Milk and mozzarella supply the protein and calcium, which is where most of the 25 grams a serving comes from. The béchamel is doing mechanical work as well: a flour-and-milk sauce coats the sheets and hydrates them while the dish bakes, so the pasta turns tender in the oven rather than in a pot beforehand. Cooking the spinach down until the water has evaporated is the step that decides the texture, since any moisture still in the leaves ends up pooled in the bottom of the dish.
Nutrition (per serving)
| Calories | 453 |
|---|---|
| Protein | 25g |
| Carbs | 59g |
| Fat | 14g |
Ingredients
For the Vegetable Filling:
| Spinach | 1.2 kg |
|---|---|
| Leeks | 3 |
| Bell peppers | 2 |
| Garlic cloves | 2 |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp |
| Salt, black pepper, chilli flakes, and vegetable seasoning | To taste |
For the Béchamel Sauce:
| Butter | 1 tbsp |
|---|---|
| Plain flour | 3 tbsp |
| Semi-skimmed milk | 3 tbsp |
| Salt and black pepper | To taste |
For Layering and Topping:
| Lasagna sheets | 9 oz (about half a 1-lb box) |
|---|---|
| Shredded vegetarian mozzarella | 5¼ oz (about 1⅓ cups) |
| Grated vegetarian Parmesan | ¾ oz (about ¼ cup) |
| Fresh basil | For serving |
Step-by-Step Instructions
1 Prepare the vegetables
Chop the leeks and bell peppers. Sauté them in the olive oil for 5 to 7 minutes until softened. Add the spinach and cook until wilted and most of the moisture has evaporated. Stir in the minced garlic and the seasonings.
2 Make the sauce and assemble
Melt the butter, stir in the flour, and gradually whisk in the milk. Cook for 5 to 8 minutes until thickened, then season with salt and black pepper. Layer the béchamel, lasagna sheets, vegetable mixture, and mozzarella in a baking dish. Repeat, finishing with béchamel, mozzarella, and Parmesan.
3 Bake and serve
Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 35 to 40 minutes, until golden and bubbling and the pasta is tender. Rest for 10 minutes before serving with fresh basil.
Notes & Tips
- Do you need to boil lasagna sheets first? Not for this one. The sheets go in dry and the béchamel hydrates them as the dish bakes, which is why the sauce is spread generously between every layer. Check your package, since a few brands still ask to be boiled.
- How do you keep spinach lasagna from being watery? Cook the spinach until most of the moisture has evaporated before it goes anywhere near the dish. Spinach is mostly water, and whatever is left in the leaves will end up in the bottom of the pan.
- Can you make spinach lasagna ahead of time? Assemble it in advance and refrigerate until you are ready to bake.
- How long does spinach lasagna keep? Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Reheating. Reheat in the oven until piping hot throughout. Cover with foil if the top browns too quickly.
- Plain flour. This is all-purpose flour under its British name. Any standard all-purpose flour works.
Aysel is a London-based food creator who loves developing her own recipes and creating delicious, healthy, and approachable meals. Her goal is to show that healthy eating doesn't have to mean sacrificing flavor, and to inspire more people to enjoy cooking at home.
