Pesto lasagna, a great vegetarian alternative to the classic meat sauce lasagna typical of our Sunday lunches. The pesto lasagna is a delicious lasagna made with pesto and creamy béchamel sauce distributed over sheets of egg pasta. Each layer is enriched with pieces of stracchino cheese and plenty of grated Parmesan, and I personally also add some crumbled mozzarella.
If you have time, you can make the pasta sheets by hand, but in this recipe, I provide the quantities for the pre-made sheets ready to put in the baking dish, making it a quick dish to prepare. You’ll impress your guests in no time; just prepare the béchamel sauce, and in less than 20 minutes, you’ll have a great lasagna ready to bake. This lasagna will surely become one of your favorite dishes because it’s rich in creamy sauce that enhances the dishes and is loved by both adults and children.
I also remind you of other dishes to enrich your family lunches
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 6
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Energy 722.69 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 46.11 (g) of which sugars 9.73 (g)
- Proteins 27.94 (g)
- Fat 47.74 (g) of which saturated 19.26 (g)of which unsaturated 20.83 (g)
- Fibers 3.20 (g)
- Sodium 1,533.65 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 230 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 9 oz lasagna sheets (ready to place in the baking dish)
- 3.5 oz mozzarella
- 5.3 oz grated Parmesan cheese
- 5.3 oz stracchino cheese
- 3.2 cups béchamel sauce
- as needed butter (a few knobs)
- 1.4 oz pine nuts
- 6.3 oz pesto (up to 7 oz)
Tools
To prepare this lasagna with ready-made sheets, you only need a baking dish, but if you make the sheets at home, I recommend using the “pasta maker”
- 1 Baking Dish
- 1 Pasta Maker
Preparation
The preparation with ready-made sheets is very quick, but if you use homemade sheets, there will be only a few minutes difference. You just need to boil the sheets in salted boiling water, then place them in a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking, and then spread them on a towel to dry.
Spread a thin layer of béchamel on the bottom of the dish, then begin to cover the entire dish with pasta sheets, spread a thin layer of pesto, generous Parmesan, pieces of stracchino, a little mozzarella crumbled by hand, some pine nuts, and generous béchamel. Continue the layers until all the ingredients are used up. The sheets can overlap a little but not too much; each pasta layer must be filled.
Finally, put small knobs of butter only on the surface and bake in a preheated oven at 430°F for about 30 minutes, or until the surface is well-colored as you can see from the picture above.
Your lasagna is ready to be served, I recommend waiting 5 minutes out of the oven to let it set a bit so you can cut it well. However, you don’t want to let it cool too much, as it’s a very creamy lasagna; if a few minutes pass out of the oven, it will be easier to serve on plates.
NOTES
The pesto lasagna is delicious right out of the oven, but like all lasagnas, it also does well reheated in the microwave. It keeps well for two to three days in the refrigerator once cooked.
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If you liked the recipe or have questions, feel free to comment here or on social media Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter
If you liked the recipe or have questions, feel free to comment here or on social media Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use other types of pesto?
Sure, you can use other types of pesto, such as pistachio or zucchini pesto. Just remember to apply a thin layer of pesto for each layer since pesto is already a rich condiment.
