Authentic Spinach Lasagna with Ricotta
Updated Apr 24, 2025, Published Jun 09, 2022
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Authentic Spinach Lasagna with Ricotta is an Italian classic you don’t want to miss! Made with wholesome ingredients, this recipe is one the whole family will love. Get ideas here for What to Serve with Lasagna.
What started as our simple family vegetarian lasagna recipe is now made by thousands of people across the globe. Here’s a bit about why this recipe stands out above the rest:
” First time I ever made lasagna, and this recipe couldn’t be easier! The taste of each element was so so good, especially the tomato marinara. It truly does makes a difference when you choose the better variety of canned tomatoes.
– DAKSHEE
Definitely a new favourite recipe for me, and will keep coming back to this one again and again.”
Simple Ingredients
Only wholesome and fresh ingredients will help make this spinach lasagna recipe the absolute BEST!
- Lasagna pasta sheets (store-bought, no boil also work), or make your own- Authentic Homemade Pasta Recipe.
- Sugo al pomodoro (add garlic cloves to the sauce if you like)
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Spinach, cooked
- Whole milk ricotta (use the best quality ricotta you can find!)
- Egg
- Ground nutmeg (optional)
- Mozzarella cheese
- Parmigiano cheese
- Basil leaves
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
See recipe card for quantities.
Recipe Variations
- Meat: Add meat to the red sauce such as crumbled and cooked Italian sausage, cooked ground beef, or diced grilled chicken.
- Veggies: Feel free to add other vegetables such as mushrooms, zucchini, bell peppers, or carrots.
- Greens: You can substitute kale, escarole, or other cooked greens for spinach.
- Cheese: Try adding other cheeses such as fontina, provolone, or Pecorino Romano. Add a bechamel sauce with a flour butter roux for an extra layer of goodness.
- Spices: try adding other herbs and spices like garlic powder, chili powder, oregano, thyme, or rosemary.
How To Make Spinach Lasagna
The recipe card below provides a complete list of measurements and instructions. Making lasagna is simple. You can make the filling and homemade marinara sauce ahead of time and assemble them when you are ready to bake!
This dish starts with a spinach and ricotta filling, which is a mixture of cooked chopped spinach, ricotta, mozzarella, a cup of grated parmesan cheese, herbs, and spices. Then, a simple tomato sauce. I recommend making your own fresh sauce, but you can definitely use store-bought if you already have it on hand.
Start layering the lasagna by placing a bit of tomato sauce in the bottom of a baking pan. Layer the cooked lasagna pasta or no-boil pasta noodles (as seen in the photo) on top of the tomato sauce. Either no-boil or boil yourself works for this recipe.
Add part of the spinach-ricotta cheese mixture and then more of the tomato sauce.
Repeat the layers until the pan is full, ensuring the red sauce is the top layer. Sprinkle more cheese and done! Bake the lasagna until the cheese is melted and golden brown. Once the dish is baked, let it cool a bit, cut into portions, and serve.
You can cover it with saran wrap and aluminum foil and freeze it for a rainy day when you need an oven-ready meal. It is also fabulous to take to a friend or neighbor who needs a meal.
FAQ’s
Yes, but make sure you squeeze out as much of the liquid as possible so the lasagna doesn’t get watery or runny.
Yes, you can substitute cottage cheese with a 1:1 ratio. Cottage cheese is slightly lighter while using ricotta the lasagna will be thicker and richer.
There are a few reasons your lasagna is watery. If you use frozen spinach, you may not have drained or squeezed as much of the liquid out as possible. Using wet noodles that were not drained properly is another probable cause.
Yes, but the lasagna may be a little more loose than you’re used to but it will taste the same. You can omit altogether or use an egg substitute like cream with cornstarch.
This recipe includes Homemade sugo al pomodoro (tomato sauce), freshly grated cheeses, fresh ricotta cheese, earthy spinach, and a hint of spices. This recipe highlights simple fresh ingredients as traditional Italian recipes commonly do. If you ever feel like you’ve ingested a brick bomb after eating a heavy lasagna, I promise you won’t feel that way after this light and fresh recipe. It is the true Italian way, just like my Nonna used to make for us.
The canned sauces are packed full of fat, salt, and sugar. That’s why it’s always better to make your own sauce. You’ll eat a much healthier meal, you won’t add all the salt, sugar, and fat, and you know exactly what you’re eating. I make a big batch of our Classic Italian Tomato Sauce and freeze it in portions to always have on hand. You can’t beat the fresh taste!
For this recipe, you cook the lasagna noodles before building the lasagna. This creates a more authentic lasagna recipe. Cook the noodles in salted boiling water according to the directions on the package, then lay the cooked noodles on a flat surface so that they won’t stick together. See this post on how to cook pasta perfectly every time. However, if you are in a pinch you can use no-boil pasta lasagna sheets. Here is what you need to do for that.
Using no-boil lasagna noodles decreases the prep time for homemade lasagna by at about 15 minutes total. If you use the no-boil variety you will need to add more liquid and cover the lasagna tightly until the end before you brown the cheesy top.
No-boil lasagna noodles are often thinner than regular lasagna noodles and are already partially cooked in a water bath before they were dried and packaged.
They don’t require boiling, but they need additional liquid to reconstitute them during the baking process. Adding 1/4 cup of water to the sauce adds the extra liquid needed for the noodles to cook without making the lasagna dry.
Lasagnas that contain no-boil noodles should be kept tightly covered with a lid or foil during baking so the steam can help cook the noodles. Take off the cover during the last 5-10 minutes to brown the cheese layer.
Expert Tips
- I recommend using whole-milk ricotta cheese and mozzarella cheese for the best flavor. That being said. Yes, you can substitute for part-skim versions if you need. The cheese won’t melt as nicely since low-fat cheese contains added stabilizers.
- Use freshly shredded cheese, not a bag of pre-shredded cheese. Bagged cheese from the grocery store often contains anti-caking agents and does not melt smoothly.
- If possible, make your own marinara sauce (sugo al pomodoro). It takes 20 minutes and is worth the fresh and light flavor. I make mine in large batches and freeze them in containers. I can pull one out whenever I need it for a recipe.
- Squeeze all the excess water out of the cooked spinach. This will prevent your lasagna from getting watery as it bakes.
More Italian Lasagna Recipes For You
- Layered with tender pasta, rich Bolognese, creamy béchamel, and plenty of melty mozzarella and Parmigiano, this authentic lasagna bolognese with bechamel sauce is classic Italian lasagna at its best!
- This Mediterranean lasagna recipe is bursting with roasted veggies, bold flavors, and four cheeses, baked to golden perfection.
- This white chicken lasagna with spinach hits the spot. It’s rich, flavorful, and layered with love!
Make-Ahead, Storage, & Reheating Instructions
Freezing Uncooked Lasagna
- Assemble your lasagna in your oven-safe dish and cover it generously with plastic wrap.
- When ready to eat the frozen lasagna, defrost it the night before so it can thaw perfectly. You can also pull straight from the freezer and add 30 minutes to the cooking time.
Freezing Cooked Lasagna
- If you have leftover cooked lasagna, you can freeze it in portions by wrapping individual slices in plastic wrap and storing them in an airtight container. Make sure to let the lasagna cool before freezing.
- When you want to reheat it, defrost the lasagna a few hours ahead and then reheat it in the oven at 400 degrees F for about 10 minutes.
- TIP: When reheating lasagna in the oven, cover the surface with aluminum foil to prevent the top from cooking even more.
Make ahead of time:
- This dish can be assembled up to 6 hours before baking. Store it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake and eat it.
- In an airtight container, you can store any leftover lasagna in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Serving Suggestions
Serve it with an orange fennel salad on a weeknight or alongside a platter of my signature polpette (Italian meatballs), or Italian Braciole Recipe (Stuffed Beef with Sauce) for Sunday dinner. Add some homemade bread, and you are all set! Or you can also check these Classic Italian Recipes for dinner!
Don’t forget dessert: Creamy Frozen Lemon Bars with Graham Cracker Crust, Italian Fruit Salad, and Classic Italian Tiramisu Recipe (Authentic).
More ricotta recipes to try: Italian Frittata Recipe with Peas and Ricotta, Easy Lemon Ricotta Pasta with Capers, and Baked Eggplant with Tomato Sauce and Ricotta.
If you love sweets with ricotta, try these- BEST Authentic Sicilian Cannoli Recipe and Sweet Ricotta Pie! And if you love spinach recipes, try this Easy Spinach Quiche, Spinach Manicotti, Creamed Spinach, and Spinach Pasta Recipe!
More recipes to try:
- BEST Authentic Sicilian Cannoli Recipe
- BEST Neapolitan Pizza DOUGH RECIPE and GUIDE
- Sauteed Italian Zucchini
- Creamy Polenta with Polpette al Sugo (meatballs in tomato sauce)
- Pasta Recipe- Asparagus Ricotta Lemon
- SIMPLE Mashed Potatoes (dairy free) and Caramelized Onions
- Classic Italian Ragu (Meat Sauce)
- Shrimp and Broccoli Pasta in Cream Sauce
- BEST Italian Beef Short Rib Ragu
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Spinach Lasagna with Ricotta Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 to 16 dried lasagna pasta, also use no boil if desired
- 3 to 4 cups sugo al pomodoro
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cups 1 ½ pounds fresh spinach, cooked (steamed or sautéed, liquid removed)
- 32 oz whole milk ricotta
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp fresh ground nutmeg, optional
- 1 ½ cups freshly grated mozzarella cheese, extra for top
- 2 cups freshly grated parmigiano reggiano cheese, extra for top
- 6 fresh basil leaves, torn with hands
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Make a batch of the Sugo al Pomodoro (tomato sauce). Set aside.
- Steam or saute spinach and remove liquid. Cool completely. Cut to create small pieces.
- Mix the ricotta, egg, parmigiano, nutmeg (if using) and basil in a large bowl until combined. Once spinach is cooled, combine with ricotta mixture.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. (skip steps 5-6 if using no boil noodles)
- Cook the noodles (6 at a time for dried pasta) until they are tender but still underdone (they will finish cooking as the lasagna bakes). Set aside in a bowl of cold water until ready to use. This will prevent pasta from sticking.
- Grease a 9X13 rectangular baking dish with the olive oil, add a large dollop of tomato sauce and spread it around the bottom of the pan. Put a layer of pasta (use 4-5 depending on size) in the dish (you may need to cut any excess to make them fit) top with a layer of tomato sauce, one-third of the spinach and ricotta mixture, and one-third of the grated mozzarella (use your fingers to spread it evenly). Season with salt and pepper if desired.
- Repeat the layers three times. For the top, cover with extra cheese.
- The lasagna may be made ahead to this point, wrapped tightly and refrigerated for up to a day or frozen.
- Bake until the lasagna is bubbling and the cheese is melted and lightly browned on top, about 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest a few minutes before serving, or cool completely, cover well, and refrigerate for up to 3 days, or freeze.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Love all your recipes lots of them. Keep up the the good work
You are so kind! This means a lot to me and I really appreciate it 🙂
Super versatile recipe but perfect as written! This has been my go-to lasagna recipe for a couple of years now.
Yay! Happy it is a staple in your home!
Yay! So happy about this.
Best lasagna ever! My husband has to have meat with dinner so I added turkey sausage fresh from my neighbor’s farm to the sauce. Sooo good. This will be my go to lasagna recipe from now on!
Absolutely delicious! This was the first time i made this recipe and it was a hit with my toddler grandkids and their parents! I couldn’t find whole milk ricotta so used part skim ricotta and it was delicious.
Thrilled the whole family loved it!
Best lasagna recipe I’ve ever made! This was delicious! I plan on making again and again!!
Happy you loved it! It’s a tried and true classic. I have a new Mediterranean Lasagna recipe that I published TODAY. Check it out and add that one to the list too. Enjoy!
This the first time I ever made lasagne and it was for company. I picked this recipe because some guests were vegetarian and it sounded healthy with the fresh spinach. I am so glad I found it because it was easy to follow and everyone loved it! I made it mostly as written but used the no-boil noodles and one 24 oz. jar Rao’s marinara sauce and a half jar of Rao’s Arrabbiata sauce. It wasn’t too spicy and had great flavor! I couldn’t resist adding a cup or two more ricotta because we love it and it came out great! I did have to adjust the cooking time because I had made it the day before and it was chilled when I put it in the oven. I think it took over an hour covered with foil and it looked just like the picture on the computer when I uncovered it. Thank you for a delicious recipe and can’t wait to try more!
Hi Laura! Thrilled you loved the lasagna recipe. I hope you enjoy many more recipes in the future. All the best, Elena
Turned out incredible! Thanks for the amazing recipe!! I also followed your recipe for homemade sauce and it turned out so well!!
Thrilled you loved the recipe. It is a family favorite here as well.
First time I ever made lasagna, and this recipe couldn’t be easier! The taste of each element was so so good, especially the tomato marinara. It truly does make a difference when you choose the better variety of canned tomatoes.
Definitely a new favourite recipe for me, and will keep coming back to this one again and again
I’m thrilled it will be on your rotation. It is a family favorite and well-loved. Enjoy!
Best lasagna ever!!
So happy you loved it!
Yay! So happy you loved it!
Thank you for this recipe as I had the ingredients in the house and the dish came out well. I appreciate the instructions using no boil lasagna noodles.
So happy you loved it!