Creamy, flavorful, and nourishing Vegan Butternut Squash Lasagna with the best vegan ricotta makes the most comforting weeknight meal! Leftovers taste even better the next day, and this makes enough to feed a crowd. Packed with over 18g plant protein per serving, this is not only delicious but also super filling!
If you've made my famous Vegan Lasagna, you'll be especially pumped for this epic fall version of our fave recipe.
Like my Vegan Butternut Squash Pasta, she's oh so creamy and satisfying beyond measure!
Because all I want to do this season is curl up in a big cozy chair with a pile of lasagna and a good book. Who's with me?!
Ingredients
- Butternut squash: We're using a large squash to form the base of our creamy sauce.
- Lasagna noodles: Regular, whole wheat, gluten free, oven-ready...use whatever you love.
- Tofu ricotta: You'll need firm tofu, nutritional yeast, hummus, garlic powder and salt for this creamy ricotta.
- Cashews: Raw cashews add extra creaminess and body to the sauce. I've tested this with roasted and they work in a pinch but I really recommend raw for the most neutral flavor.
- Broth: The liquid base of our sauce, which adds amazing salty, umami flavor.
- Nutmeg: I love the extra flair nutmeg adds. It truly pairs beautifully with squash.
- Olive oil: For roasting the squash. You can also use avocado oil.
Substitutions
- Gluten free: Use gluten free noodles like this brown rice pasta or this green lentil one for extra protein and to make it grain free.
- Veggies: Feel free to use kale or chard instead of spinach. You could also sauté mushrooms and use those in the filling for extra texture and umami.
- Broth: I really like the savory flavors broth adds, but you can also try unsweetened non-dairy milk. You'll need to add an extra ½ tsp salt to the recipe.
How to make (step-by-step)
Soak cashews in broth.
Roast squash for 25 minutes.
Make tofu ricotta.
Blend cashews and broth. Add squash, nutmeg and salt.
Blend until smooth and creamy.
Spread sauce on bottom of baking dish. Top with noodles.
Add half the ricotta and spinach.
Top with more sauce.
Repeat with noodles, remaining ricotta and spinach, then a final layer of noodles and sauce. Bake, rest, and devour!
How to cut squash
- Use a sharp knife to slice both ends off the squash.
- Use a vegetable peeler to peel all of the skin off.
- Slice in half longways.
- Scoop out all of the seeds and fleshy strings with a spoon.
- Flip squash half so it's cut side down. Cut length-wise into ¾ inch long strips. Then chop those into cubes. Repeat with the other half.
Expert time-saving tips
The instructions for this recipe may seem lengthy, but lucky for you, I've got solutions to make this come together much faster!
- Use pre-cut squash.
- Use no-boil lasagna noodles.
- Make tofu ricotta the day before to speed up assembly.
Can I use oven-ready lasagna?
Yes, I tested this recipe with no-boil noodles and it worked great. I used Trader Joe's brand and they were fully cooked in 30 minutes per the recipe.
I've also used regular noodles and whole wheat noodles with success.
How to make in advance
You can make this up to one day in advance. Assemble the lasagna per the recipe. Instead of baking, wrap tightly with foil and refrigerate until ready to bake the next day.
Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking to allow lasagna to get back to room temperature before baking.
Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
How to freeze
Freeze the cooked and fully cooled lasagna tightly wrapped with foil for up to 3 months. You can also bag individual portions and freeze for single servings.
Please let me know how this vegan lasagna turns out for you by leaving a star rating and/or comment! I hope you adore it as much as I do
Print
Nourishing Vegan Butternut Squash Lasagna
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Yield: 9 servings 1x
- Category: Main Meals
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Creamy, flavorful, and nourishing Vegan Butternut Squash Lasagna with the best vegan ricotta makes the most comforting weeknight meal! Leftovers taste even better the next day, and this makes enough to feed a crowd. Packed with over 18g plant protein per serving, this is not only healthy but also super filling!
Ingredients
For the butternut squash cream sauce:
- ¾ cup raw cashews
- 2 cups vegetable broth* (I use Better Than Bouillon)
- 1 medium-large butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into ¾-inch pieces**
- 1 ½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- ¾ tsp salt, divided + freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup water
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
For the lasagna:
- 9-12 lasagna noodles
- 1 batch vegan ricotta
- 1 10oz bag frozen spinach, thawed and water squeezed out
- Optional: handful of finely chopped walnuts, for texture on top
Instructions
- Prep: Press tofu for the ricotta. Pour broth into a 4-cup liquid measuring cup or medium bowl. Add cashews to broth and set aside to soak while you chop squash and thaw spinach (I used the microwave).
- Roast squash: Preheat oven to 425F. Place prepared squash on a large baking sheet. Add oil, ½ tsp salt, and a few grinds of pepper. Toss to combine and spread out so squash is not overlapping. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and lower temperature to 375F.
- Boil noodles: While squash roasts, cook noodles in salted water per the package directions. (Or you can use no-boil noodles and skip this step.) Lay out cooked noodles on an oiled baking sheet or kitchen towel for easy assembly. Have thawed spinach ready to go, making sure you've squeezed out the water.
- Make the tofu ricotta while noodles cook.
- Make squash sauce: Pour cashews and broth in a large high-speed blender (this will not fit in a Nutribullet). Blend until smooth and creamy. Add 1 cup water, remaining ¼ tsp salt, nutmeg, and roasted squash. Blend again until smooth, stopping to stir as needed. It will be thick. Taste and adjust seasoning if desired.
- Assemble: Place 1 cup of squash sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish, spreading it evenly. Top with 3-4 noodles (depending on the size). Top evenly with half of the ricotta mixture and half of the spinach. Top with 1 ½ cups of sauce. Repeat with another layer of noodles, the rest of the tofu mixture, and remaining spinach. Top with one last layer of noodles and another 1 ½ cups or more of sauce (noodles should be fully covered).
- Bake: Cover dish tightly with foil and bake for about 30 minutes, or until noodles are softened. No-boil noodles may take longer. Top with walnuts for crunch and let lasagna rest for 15 minutes before digging in!
Notes
**do not use low sodium broth as the salt is key for flavor
*about 5 cups squash
To make this gluten free, I recommend Tinkyada brown rice pasta.
Mary says
This is delicious! We did not have nutmeg - subbing a little garam masala worked out great. The finished product is such a nice combination of nourishment and flavor. Thank you for this recipe.
Alexis Joseph says
Ohhh garam masala sounds lovely, thanks so much Mary!
Chandra says
What would you sub if you are not a tofu eater? thx 😉
Alexis Joseph says
Unfortunately tofu is essential in the ricotta, sorry Chandra!
Alexis Joseph says
That sounds so good, thank you Michelle!
Dylan says
Made this today and it was so good! A different take on lasagna but oh so cozy!
Alexis Joseph says
Yayyy so glad you enjoyed it!!