Marked my favorite meal of 2023, this roasted veggie medley lasagna is a symphony of flavors and textures, where tender lasagna noodles embrace a vibrant medley of perfectly roasted vegetables, sandwiching a cheesy filling, and a dreamy red pepper sauce in each layer. Though a labor of love, it is super versatile and customizable, which makes it my go-to crowd-pleaser at any gathering. 

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Feel free to use any vegetables that you have on hand or ones that are in season. One thing to keep in mind is the method of cooking those vegetables. For squashes, I find roasting them in the oven with olive oil, salt, and thyme to be my preferred method, but for eggplants, It’s always pan frying them in plenty of olive oil on the stove. As long as you cook the vegetables well, you are going to be left with a breathtaking dish. For the lasagna sheets, I used fresh pasta but packaged lasagna sheets work great too, just pay attention to the cooking instructions. For the sauce, you want to leave it pretty runny as this will help us prevent a dry lasagna when baking. As for the cheesy spinach, I liek to go heavy on the spinach and use less cheese, but feel free to use less spinach (reduce spinach amount by 100g) and add more cheese (increase ricotta by 100g). I also don’t like to go crazy with the shredded mozzarella in between layers but you do whatever floats your boat!

 
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Homestyle Roasted Veggie Lasagna:

Prep time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

Cook time: 1 hour 25 minute

Serving: 8-10 portions

Vegetables:

  •  3 cups (500g) butternut squash, cubed
  • 2 medium or 3 cups (415g) zucchinis, cubed
  • 1 large or 4 cups (530g) eggplant, sliced
  • ¼ cup + 2 tbsp olive oil
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1 tsp thyme

Sauce:

  • 2 medium red bell peppers, sliced*
  • 2 medium yellow onions, sliced
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 5 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1 tsp thyme
  • 2 cups (400g) crushed tomatoes
  • ½ cup water
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar


Cheesy spinach layer:

  • 2 ½ cups (250g) Spinach, roughly chopped*
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 300g ricotta
  • 1 egg
  • ¼ tsp nutmeg, optional
  • 3 garlic cloves, crushed
  • ¼ cup (25g) parmesan

For assembling:

  • 8 large lasagna sheets
  • 2 cups (400g) mozzarella, shredded

Notes:

  1. You can substitute fresh red bell peppers for 1 jar (350g) of fire-roasted peppers.  

2. You can use fresh or frozen spinach. 

3. I used 8 large lasagna sheets for a 3 quart 9 x 13-inch pyrex dish. 

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 420°F (215°C). Wash, peel, and scoop out the inside of the butternut squash, cut it into cubes, and set aside. Wash and cut the zucchinis into cubes. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the squash and zucchini on opposite ends. Avoid mixing the two vegetables so they roast better. Drizzle 2 tbsp of olive oil and sprinkle salt, thyme, and oregano. Gently toss each side of the tray until they are well coated. Roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until soft and lightly browned. Give the veggies a toss at the halfway mark to prevent burning.

2. In the meantime, Wash, peel (optional), and cut a large eggplant into cubes. Place the eggplant cubes on a tray and sprinkle with salt to draw out the moisture. Let it sit for 10 minutes.

3. Prepare the cheesy spinach layer. Crush 3 garlic cloves and set aside. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a non-stick pan, and add in the frozen or fresh roughly chopped spinach. Sauté for 1 minute or until it becomes vibrant. Turn off the heat and add the slightly sauteed spinach to a bowl. to the bowl. Add the crushed garlic, parmesan, ricotta, and nutmeg. Mix until well combined, and when the mixture is slightly cooled, crack in the egg and mix until well combined, set aside.

4. Use a paper towel to pat the eggplant cubes dry. Wipe off any excess spinach in the pan we previously used, and heat up ¼ cup olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add the eggplant cubes. Fry for 6-7 minutes on medium heat until they are soft and browned. Take out of the pan and set aside. toss the eggplants, zucchini, and squash until combined.

5. If you are using fresh pasta or lasagna sheets that require cooking, cook them in heavily salted hot boiling water as instructed and let them rest in cold water so they don’t stick together. Save the pasta water for the sauce. If your lasagna sheets do not require cooking, skip this step.

6. For the sauce, Wash and slice the red bell peppers into thin strips and set aside. Wash, peel, and thinly slice the onions and set aside. Crush 5 garlic cloves and set aside. In the same pan that we fried the eggplants in, heat up ¼ cup of olive oil. Once hot, add in the thinly sliced peppers and onions. Sauté with 1 tsp of salt on medium heat until soft and slightly browned, around 6-7 minutes. Add in the thyme, oregano, smoked paprika, black pepper, and crushed garlic, and sauté until fragrant, around 30 seconds. Next, add in the crushed tomatoes, followed with ½ -1 cup of pasta water or hot boiling water, and 1 tbsp of balsamic vinegar. Mix until well combined and simmer for 5-10 minutes. You want the sauce to still be wet.

7. Preheat the oven to 320°F (160°C). Assemble the lasagna by spreading ¼ of the sauce mixture at the bottom of the dish so the lasagna sheets don’t stick. Place the first 2 sheets. Add a ¼ of the sauce and spread it evenly. Top with half of the roasted veggies and sprinkle ⅓ of the shredded mozzarella. Place 2 more sheets on top and spread all the cheesy spinach mixture evenly. Top with 2 sheets of lasagna, spread another ¼ of the sauce, add the other half of the roasted veggies, and sprinkle ⅓ of the mozzarella. Top with the last 2 lasagna sheets and evenly spread the last ¼ of the sauce, followed by the remaining shredded mozzarella. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes, take off the foil and let the top brown for 5-10 minutes under the broiler. Take it out of the oven and let it rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting into it and voila!