This Butternut Squash Lasagna is full of flavor and so comforting. With almond ricotta, a creamy butternut squash sauce and kale, this lasagna would be a wonderful addition to your holiday table. Completely vegan and easily made gluten free.
This autumn inspired lasagna is the perfect cozy meal for entertaining friends and family. It would make a beautiful main course for Thanksgiving that everyone will enjoy! And I would bet no one will guess there’s no dairy involved.
While I love classic lasagna, this butternut squash lasagna is a completely different dish. There is no red sauce at all, but instead a creamy, mellow, delightful butternut squash sauce and layers of kale and almond ricotta. Sometimes simple is the most delicious!
There is a bit of work required for this dish, but it’s not too complicated and I’ve broken it down in easy to follow steps.
Ingredients needed (with substitutions)
- Butternut squash – About 1 large squash, or use store bought pre-peeled and cut butternut squash to make this even easier. I can often find it at my local grocery store or Costco. You need about 6 cups cubed.
- Olive oil – For roasting the squash.
- Unsweetened soy milk – Or another non-dairy milk like almond or cashew, but make sure it’s unflavored and unsweetened.
- Salt
- Nutmeg – This is a wonderful addition to the sauce. Grated is even better then ground if you can.
- Black pepper
- Vegan Ricotta – You will use the whole recipe for the lasagna. See the post about subbing cashews or even tofu for nut free.
- Kale – I usually buy bagged, pre-chopped kale, making this super simple.
- Lasagna noodles – I used Tinkyada gluten free lasagna, my favorite. Don’t use no boil here, we are going to pre-cook the noodles.
How to make it
This is simply an overview with photos, scroll down to find the recipe card with all the details.
- First, make the butternut squash sauce. Roast the cubed squash in the oven, then add to a food processor with the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth and creamy.
- Make the vegan ricotta in a food processor, following the instructions. It’s very simple!
- Layer. Add a little sauce to a large dish, followed by lasagna noodles, then 1/2 the ricotta, 1/2 the kale and a cup of the sauce. Layer again with more noodles, the rest of the ricotta, the rest of the kale, another cup of sauce.
- Finish with more noodles, then pour the rest of the sauce over the top. If desired, you can add a bag of non-dairy cheese shreds here, but I did not.
Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes, then remove from the oven, sprinkle with parsley if desired and serve. Enjoy!
What to serve with butternut squash lasagna
A simple salad or cooked vegetable is a great choice for a simple yet elegant dinner.
How to store leftovers or prep ahead
This lasagna will keep in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. It might freeze okay, but the noodles will likely get quite soggy.
To prep ahead of time, prepare the lasagna but do not bake, instead stick it in the refrigerator, covered, for up to a day before baking and serving.
More main vegan dishes for the holidays
- The Best Vegan Meatloaf
- Lentil Loaf
- Vegan Pot Pie
- Biscuit Topped Chickpea Pot Pie
- Vegan Stuffed Jumbo Shells
- Vegan Baked Ziti
Butternut Squash Lasagna
Ingredients
Butternut Squash Sauce
- 1 large butternut squash, peeled and cubed (about 6 cups cubed)
- 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup unsweetened soy milk*
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- few shakes of black pepper
The Rest
- 1 Recipe Vegan Ricotta
- 4 cups packed chopped kale, stems removed (1 bunch)
- 12 lasagna noodles, gluten free if needed
- 1 bag (2 cups) vegan mozzarella cheese, optional
- parsley, optional
Instructions
Make the butternut squash sauce
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and lightly oil a baking sheet. Peel and chop the butternut squash, then add to the pan and drizzle with a little olive oil. Toss to coat the squash, then sprinkle with salt and bake for 25-30 minutes, until tender and golden. Remove from oven. Lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees.
- Transfer cooked squash to a food processor, along with the non-dairy milk, salt, nutmeg and pepper and blend until smooth and creamy. Transfer to a bowl and set aside (you will need the food processor for the ricotta as well).
Prepare the vegan ricotta
- While the squash is roasting in the oven, prepare the Vegan Ricotta.
Cook the kale
- Steam the chopped kale in a large pot with a steamer basket (about 2 cups of water on the bottom) for about 10 minutes on medium-high heat, or until tender. Season with a little salt and set aside. I often cook it in my Instant Pot instead.
Cook the noodles
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then cook the lasagna noodles according to package instructions. Drain, then rinse in cold water. I like to lay the rinsed noodles on a baking sheet so they don't all stick together.
Assemble
- In a 9x13 inch baking dish, place about 3/4 cup of the squash mixture over the bottom.
- Place a layer of noodles (3 or 4 noodles), then add 1/2 of the ricotta mixture, in spoonfuls. Layer 1/2 of the kale, then about a cup of the butternut squash sauce. See the photos in the post above for reference.
- Repeat with another layer of noodles, then the rest of the ricotta, the rest of the kale, another cup of butternut sauce. Finish with a layer of noodles and the rest of the butternut sauce.
- If desired, add a bag of non-dairy mozzarella to the top. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 25 minutes (at 375 degrees). Sprinkle lasagna with chopped parsley, if desired and serve. Enjoy!
Notes
- To make this easier, you can purchase pre-peeled and chopped butternut squash.
- You may use another kind of non-dairy milk if desired, just make sure it is unsweetened and unflavored.
- Gluten free: Use gluten free lasagna noodles, I used Tinkyada brand which I love, made from brown rice.
- Nut free: If you need this lasagna to be nut free, use tofu instead of nuts for the ricotta recipe. I include instructions how to do this on that recipe page.
- You may sub baby spinach for the kale if desired, there is really no need to pre-cook baby spinach, you could just layer it in raw, it will wilt when in the oven.
This was so good! Fun to try a different lasagna without red sauce. I didn’t have nutmeg so used pumpkin pie spice, and topped with the vegan mozzarella. 10 / 10 – would recommend. Thanks, Nora!
You are welcome, Stephanie! I’m so glad you loved the lasagna! I appreciate your awesome review and feedback! Happy cooking!
Nora, you are one of my top go-to vegan recipe creators. Especially when I am feeding non-vegans. I made this exactly as written for a Friendsgiving I hosted last night. Here are my takeaways: The lasagna was not pretty coming out of the oven. It looked dry and sort of cracked. Perhaps covering it for most of the baking time would have been a good idea. I did not use the optional vegan mozzarella on top. I think putting an additional layer of whichever greens you use on the very top would be good and I would have liked more greens all together. I used a spinach, at least five cups, but it still seemed to disappear. I did make the almond ricotta but I might have preferred tofu ricotta. It was very well received, people selected it when fixing their to-go plates at the end of the evening. The butternut squash sauce was delicious and would be lovely any way you ate it. I have plenty of roasted and cubed butternut leftover, I’ll try it again. Thank you for the recipe!
This is an excellent recipe! Followed the recipe for the most part, but added about 5 cloves of garlic to roast with the butternut squash. I sauteed baby spinach and kale together in EVOO and a little crushed red pepper. Also caramelized shallots to sprinkle over the top layer of Violife mozzarella shreds and drizzed that with some Trader Joe’s heavy whipping cream. Thinking a bechamel sauce over the top instead of the cheese would be awesome also. All my non-vegan friends have loved it too! Thanks again for another top notch recipe!