Use your slow cooker to make this easy and healthy Vegetarian Lasagna! Perfect for meatless Mondays!
Easy and cheesy and loaded with vegetables like baby spinach, mushrooms, zucchini and tomatoes, everyone loves this vegetarian crockpot recipe!
After we loved this Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Casserole so much, it got me thinking about making other crockpot casseroles.
Researching slow cooker lasagnas led me to a vegetarian version by Eating Well. It had my favorite veggies - spinach, mushrooms and zucchini. It had plenty of cheese.
I tweaked it a bit, added some Italian seasoning, tomato paste (for richer flavor) and instead of combining the spinach, mushrooms and zucchini with the ricotta, I chose to layer them.
We loved this easy slow cooker casserole!
Ingredients:
Cheese - ricotta mozzarella. Usually I try to buy blocks of mozzarella and shred it fresh, but I wanted quick and easy!
Spices - Italian seasoning, salt and pepper and red pepper flakes.
Vegetables - portobello mushrooms (can substitute whatever kind you can find,) baby spinach (or baby arugula or baby kale,) and a zucchini (or yellow squash.)
Canned - crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes and tomato paste.
Egg and lasagna noodles.
Directions
Begin by combining the ricotta, eggs, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
Use a spoon to remove the gills from the mushrooms and thinly slice. Thinly slice the zucchini and mince the garlic.
Note - this where I change up the recipe. The have you add the spinach, mushrooms and zucchini to the cheese mixture, I prefer to have it in a separate layer.
Make the tomato sauce by combining the canned tomatoes (draining the diced tomatoes first,) the crushed tomatoes, the garlic, the tomato paste, salt and pepper, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes.
Coat the slow cooker with cooking spray and spread about 1 ½ cups of the tomato sauce on the bottom.
Arrange 5 of the noodles over the sauce, breaking them up a bit to make as even as a layer as possible. Don't fret too much over this!
Spread half of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. It's pretty thick so just dollop it on and then spread it out as best you can.
Layer half of the spinach, mushrooms and zucchini.
Spread over 1 ½ cups of the sauce and sprinkle with 1 cup of the mozzarella.
Repeat the layers with the noodles, ricotta, spinach, mushrooms, zucchini, sauce and cheese.
Finish with a final layer of noodles and sauce.
Cook on high for 2 hours or low for 4. I actually did low for more like 5 ½ hours and it was fine.
When time is up, turn off the slow cooker and sprinkle the top with the final cup of cheese. Cover and let stand for about 10 minutes to melt the cheese.
This was so good and has become one our go to meatless meals.
I love that I can start this right after lunch and have it cooking away all afternoon, ready for dinner. If you work from home, it's perfect.
It's also great on a Saturday or Sunday, just layer all the ingredients in the slow cooker after lunch and then spend your afternoon doing fun things and not worrying about dinner!
It's a great no meat slow cooker recipe that you can make in your crockpot and kids love it!
Family friendly slow cooker recipes
Recipe
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Slow Cooker Vegetarian Lasagna
Ingredients
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 egg
- 5 ounces baby spinach
- 4 portobello mushrooms caps only, gills removed
- 1 zucchini thinly sliced
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes
- 28 ounces canned diced tomatoes drained
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 15 lasagna noodles
- 3 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
- salt and pepper
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Combine the ricotta, eggs, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
- In another bowl combine the drained canned tomatoes, the crushed tomatoes, the garlic, tomato paste, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes.
- Coat the slow cooker with cooking spray and spread about 1 ½ cups of the tomato sauce on the bottom.
- Arrange 5 noodles over the sauce, breaking them up to fit as needed.
- Dollop on a half of the ricotta mixture and spread it out as best you can.
- Layer half of the spinach, mushrooms and zucchini. Spread 1 ½ cups of tomato sauce over that layer and top with 1 cup of the shredded cheese.
- Repeat the layers with the noodles, ricotta, vegetables, sauce and cheese.
- Finish with a final layer of noodles and sauce.
- Cook on high for 2 hours or low for 4.
- When the time is up, top with the remaining cup of cheese. Put the lid back on and let rest for 10 minutes to melt the cheese.
Sam says
I wanted to make this and did my shopping based on the ingredients you mentioned. You didn’t list eggs so I didn’t buy any. And now I can’t make this dish. Not happy as the nearest supermarket is 25 kms away.
Pam Greer says
Oh my gosh, I am so sorry. It is listed in the ingredients in the post and in the step by step instructions, but I somehow left it off of the ingredient list in the recipe card.
Maya says
What a cool idea - love it!
Andrea says
Never thought you could cook a lasagna in the slow cooker. This is so easy and delicious.
Beth says
I've never tried making lasagne in the slow cooker but I'm definitely going to try this recipe soon. No rushing around at dinner time trying to find something for the kids to eat...because its already cooking away in the slow cooker. Love it!
Jessica Formicola says
I love the idea of lasagna in the slow cooker! Having dinner ready by the time I get home from work is the best!
Eileen says
We love lasagna but it can be such a chore to prepare. When I saw this one in the slow cooker, decided to make it. Well it is a hit. Just delicious and so easy in the slow cooker.
Angela says
Love this recipe! So many fresh ingredients and I get to make in the slow cooker. Weeknight perfection. YUM!