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Truly a hearty home cooked meal with little to no effort. I love lasagna. This is probably the best lasagna I have had in a long time.
Katrina
This Crockpot Lasagna Feels Like Magic
I recently made this crockpot lasagna while reclining in a really comfy chair at a movie theater. Watching Frozen. Which I realized now is really going to date this post. (Cutest movie ever!)
We came home, opened the door, and dinner was ready to go (and smelled AMAZING too). Honestly there was nothing better.
Not only was it easy to make and delicious, but it’s also packed with a lot of amazing feel-good things – as in LOT OF VEGGIES.
I mean, it’s basically a salad! Just layered with lots of carbs and cheese.
This recipe has brought me a lot of joy lately and I hope it does for you too!
Ingredients You Need
There’s just a lot of simplicity here! This is all you need:
- Marinara sauce
- Lasagna noodles
- Ricotta or cottage cheese
- Veggies (I used kale!)
- Pesto
- More cheese! Mozzarella to be specific.
What I love about this is that I typically have *most* of these things on-hand at any given time in my fridge or pantry.
How To Make This Lasagna
I love a crockpot recipe! You do the work on the front-end and then you just get to relax until it’s time to eat.
- Prep the Crockpot: Spray the crockpot and layer some sauce on the bottom to avoid sticking.
- Layer Ingredients: Start with noodles and then layer everything else up to the top – ricotta, veggies, pesto, sauce, mozzarella.
- Cook: Set it to high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8. Go do something fun!
- Rest: Turn it off and let it rest for an hour so it sets better.
Annnnnnd you’re done!
Best Veggies For Lasagna
In testing this recipe I primarily used kale, but you could use other veggies that you have on hand! Here are some ideas:
- Carrots (adds some yummy sweetness)
- Zucchini
- Mushrooms
- Red bell peppers
- Spinach
- Eggplant
Check out this (oven-baked) vegetarian lasagna recipe for more ideas!
Watch How To Make This Recipe
Super Easy Skinny Veggie Crockpot Lasagna
- Total Time: 6 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 9 1x
Description
This skinny Veggie Crockpot Lasagna is packed with good-for-you veggies and super easy to make. Just put it in the crockpot and you’ve got dinner!
Ingredients
- two 24-ounce jars or cans of marinara sauce (don’t use it all – see notes)
- 9 thick lasagna noodles with wavy edges (mine were called bronze cut)
- 24 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese OR cottage cheese
- 3–4 cups chopped vegetables of choice (I used kale)
- Pesto (to taste)
- 2 cups shredded Mozzarella or Provolone cheese
- Parmesan cheese for topping
- fresh parsley for topping
Instructions
- Prep The Crockpot: Spray the crockpot with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 1/2 cup tomato sauce to the bottom so the noodles don’t stick.
- Layer Ingredients: Break noodles so that they fit and mostly cover the bottom. They will probably be awkward looking – not a big deal. Cover with about one third of the ricotta, veggies, pesto, sauce, cheese, and end with noodles. Repeat layers two more times for a total of three complete layers. End with a layer of noodles on top, covered with a thin layer of sauce and a little bit more shredded cheese.
- Cook: Cover and cook on high for 3 hours or on low for 5-6 hours.
- Rest: Turn the crockpot off completely and let the lasagna sit for at least one hour. This allows all the moisture to get soaked into the lasagna, and if you don’t do this it will probably be more like lasagna soup – still good, but not pretty. Depending on how long you let it sit, you can either scoop pieces out or just cut with a knife like normal lasagna.
Notes
I didn’t use ALL the sauce in both jars – I probably used a total of 36 ounces (about one and a half jars), and it was really saucy.
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 6 hours
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: crockpot lasagna, healthy lasagna, veggie lasagna, lightened lasagna
More Vegetarian Pasta Recipes You’ll Love
One More Thing!
This recipe is part of our all-star slow cooker recipes page. Check it out!
This was great! I halved the recipe (thanks for making that easy in your instructions) since I’m cooking for one, and it gave me leftovers for several nights, and I enjoyed the leftovers almost more than the first night! I used chopped fresh spinach and shredded carrots for the veggies. Love how easy this is to prepare and then just leave it in the slow cooker for the afternoon. Thanks!
We plan on making the crockpot lasagna tomorrow. My question is once it is done how do you remove the lasagna? Do you do it by layers or do you take a piece with all three layers? Thank you.
Take a piece with all the layers!
Hi! Do you think this would work with gluten free lasagna noodles?
Hi! We haven’t tested that.
Frozen is my favorite movie!!
I am a stay at home Dad with very little cooking experience. I am using the crock pot a lot because it helps me make sure dinner is hit and ready when my wife comes home
I like your recipes but sometimes I feel l8ke details are missing, otherwise thank you so much.
David
Hi. I am planning to make this but can you tell me if you are supposed to cook the kale before arranging the layers?
Thank you,
Sheila
Thank you for this absolutely delicious recipe! I used 10 lasagna noodles and all of the two jars of sauce. My husband is a real meat eater, I am not, and he didn’t even miss the meat nor really realize that it wasn’t in there. This is going to become a regular in our household.
Yikes, you didn’t mention anything about if these noodles were cooked prior or not. That information would have been very helpful!
Yikes, you didn’t mention if the noodles are precooked, or not! Could have used that information for this recipe more then context about sweets and Elsa!
I was a little concerned it would be soup but I followed the directions and let it rest for over and hour and it was literally the best lasagna I have had and so fresh. I usually do frozen, but this was so easy. Minimal prep (just cutting spinach). Crockpots have made my Mondays so much easier and this recipe is a keeper. Thank you again.
Can I use oven ready lasagna noodles in this recipe? Also, I plan to add crumbled impossible burger!
Do you use regular noodles, or no bake lasagna noodles?
Regular noodles!
Made this three times already. Kids and hubby approve. Thanks for the recipe
That’s a win! 🙂 Thanks, Tammy!
I absolutely love this recipe, I make it as often as I can, it’s so simple, so flexible and so delicious. Thanks!
Do you use regular “need cooking” lasagna noodles or the fast ones that do not need pre-cook?
We’d suggest no-boil noodles!
Do you have any CKD recipes?
Omg! This was so yummy. I used zucchini and spinach as my vegetables and they were also cooked perfectly. Thank you!!!!
Everything look delicious 😋😛 👍 thanks.
Absolutely delicious – shared with my beloved neighbors! I used a veggie pasta sauce, lots of Italian herbs, along with fresh garlic, chopped spinach mixed with the cottage cheese. The veggies were small cubes of zucchini, eggplant, orange & red bell peppers, & brown mushrooms.
We loved this so much that I made it twice in one week. Couldn’t be easier – absolutely scrumptious.
Can you use gluten free noodles
Hey! I was wondering do you use oven ready noodles? Or can I use just normal noodles !
We’d recommend no-boil noodles here!
Thank you for this dish! I didn’t have pesto but added more kale and salt and it’s fantastic! Can’t wait to serve it
Looking forward to trying this recipe!
Made this and it was delicious! Have you ever froze portions afterwards ?wondering whether it would be ok.
Hi, Andrea! Yes, leftovers should freeze well for later. Enjoy!
I absolutely loved this recipe! I layered my lasagna with Prego spaghetti sauce, cottage cheese, garlic powder, Italian herbs, navy beans, chopped spinach mixed with fire roasted tomatoes and hatch green chili vinaigrette, and then parmesan and cheddar cheese. OMG… So good!