recipes

Vegetable Lasagna with Goat Cheese and Pesto

Name: Vegetable Lasagna Featuring Goat Cheese and Pesto
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h 15 min
Total time: 1 h 45 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 3 cups sliced (about ¼ inch) fresh zucchini or summer squash (from 2-8 oz.); 3 cups quartered fresh crimini mushrooms (about 8 each); 1 ½ cups chopped red bell peppers (1-9 oz, medium); 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil; 2 teaspoons sea salt, divided; ¾ teaspoon freshly ground pepper, divided; 2 tablespoons salted butter; ⅓ cup finely chopped yellow onion; 1 small clove garlic, finely minced; 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour; 1 cup whole milk; ½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon with microplaner); ¾ cup goat cheese; 4 cups (4 oz.) fresh spinach; 1-15 ounce (2 cups) whole milk ricotta; ½ cup basil pesto (homemade or store-bought); 1 large egg; ½ teaspoon red pepper chili flakes (optional); 16 sheets no-boil lasagna noodles (from 1-16 oz. box); 16 ounces whole milk part-skim mozzarella, shredded (about 4 cups); 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

by Laura Kanya | September 4, 2025

image of a lasagna baked in a red square baking dish on top of a plate next to two souper cubes trays

Table of Contents

image of a lasagna baked in a square red baking dish with a fork pulling the cheese up

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Why You’ll Love This

This vegetable lasagna with goat cheese and pesto is loaded with peak-season produce, creamy cheeses, and hearty vegetables for a vegetarian dish that’s every bit as satisfying as the classic. It’s make-ahead friendly, endlessly customizable, and perfect for swapping in your favorite roasted veggies.

Fresh, seasonal ingredients - take advantage of the summer peak produce for the best flavors.

Saucepot with onion, butter, flour and milk made into a sauce with lemon zest and goat cheese visible

Creamy, cheesy goodness - this is loaded with tangy goat cheese, creamy ricotta and melty mozzarella to make every bite indulgent and help hold the lasagna together.

Vegetarian & satisfying - the hearty vegetables and cheese are the stars.

Make-ahead friendly - assemble now and bake later in order to get the best quality results.

Customizable - don’t like these veggies?! Swap for your choice. The key is to make sure they are cooked well and add enough moisture to the lasagna.

Ingredients You’ll Need

Foil wrapped baking sheet with raw vegetables tossed in olive oil, salt and pepper

For the vegetable filling - Zucchini or summer squash bring a tender bite and mild sweetness that soak up the pesto and cheese flavors beautifully. Mushrooms add a savory, meaty texture that makes the dish satisfying even without meat, while bell peppers bring pops of color and natural sweetness. Roasting them with extra-virgin olive oil, a little sea salt, and black pepper locks in flavor and prevents watery lasagna.

For the goat cheese sauce - The goat cheese sauce is what sets this recipe apart. Butter, onion, and garlic create a rich, aromatic base. Flour thickens the sauce so it stays put in each layer, while whole milk keeps it creamy. Tangy goat cheese melts into the sauce for a luscious texture, and a touch of lemon zest brightens the whole dish.

Bowl of all ingredients for making ricotta mixture

For the ricotta layer - For the ricotta layer, fresh spinach adds earthy flavor and vibrant green color, whole-milk ricotta keeps it creamy, and pesto brings a burst of herby summer freshness. An egg binds everything together so your slices hold their shape, while red pepper flakes add a subtle kick.

Other ingredients - Finally, no-boil lasagna noodles make assembly a breeze, mozzarella gives you that irresistible cheesy stretch, and Parmesan finishes things off with a salty, golden, savory crust. Together, these ingredients make a lasagna that’s light enough for summer and packed with vegetables, but still has all the cozy comfort you want from this classic dish.

How to Make Summer Vegetable Lasagna (Step-by-Step)

Mushrooms, zucchini, squash and pepper roasted and out of oven cooling

Roast veggies - Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil. Toss zucchini, mushrooms, and peppers with olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Spread evenly and roast until lightly browned and just tender, about 45 minutes. Cool slightly.

Cutting board chopping blanched spinach with ricotta in bowl with pepper flake, egg, pesto on the side

Mix the ricotta layer - Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Blanch spinach for 5 seconds, then transfer immediately to ice water. Drain well, squeezing out excess water. Roughly chop. In a large bowl, combine spinach, ricotta, pesto, egg, red pepper flakes (if using), and salt and pepper. Mix until well combined.

Making goat cheese sauce - In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add onion and garlic; cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the flour until coated. Slowly whisk in the milk until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in goat cheese, lemon zest and salt. Set aside.

2 Souper Cubes tray in assembly to build the layers

Assemble the lasagna - Spread 1 tablespoon goat cheese sauce in each well of Souper Cubes 2-cup Trays Layer: Half a lasagna noodle (overlapping slightly), then 3 tablespoons ricotta mixture, ¼ cup roasted veggies, 2 tablespoons goat cheese sauce, ¼ cup mozzarella, 1 tablespoon Parmesan. Repeat two more times. You should have 3 layers per well and end with one more layer no-boil noodles, ¼ cup mozzarella and 1 tablespoon parmesan on top. It’s an option to bake directly into the trays, then freeze if, then pull from the freezer, thaw and reheat. Or you can freeze after assembling and bake when you are ready to enjoy.

Freeze - Place trays in the freezer until fully solid. Label lids and store for up to 3 months. You can keep lasagna in the trays or pop the frozen cubes out and transfer them to freezer bags for more space.

2 stacked Souper Cubes trays with lasagnas ready to go into the freezer

Baking Instructions:

Baking a thawed lasagna - Pull from freezer and store in the refrigerator overnight, bake at 350°F in a preheated oven, until bubbly and heated through to 165°F, about 30 minutes.

Baking a frozen lasagna - Bake covered in a preheated oven at 350°F until bubbly and heated through to 165°F, about 55 minutes. Pro Tip: If you forgot to thaw it in advance - microwave it for 4-5 minutes while the oven is preheating and it will cut the reheating time substantially.

Souper Cubes tray of lasagna & Pesto with finished baked lasagna in baking dish, veggies on the side

Pro Tips for the best Summer Vegetable Lasagna

Tips

Slice veggies uniformly - whether using a knife and cutting board or a mandolin to make it easy, it is important to slice the vegetables uniformly so they cook evenly.

Scooping leftover pesto into Souper Cubes 2 tablespoon trays

Freeze leftover pesto - Have leftover pesto? Whether you made homemade or used a store bought container, use Souper Cubes 2 tablespoon trays to freeze the portion you don’t use in the lasagna to easily use again at another time.

Use foil on your large-rimmed baking sheet - for easy cleanup and to prevent sticking. The foil reflects heat and can help distribute the heat more evenly.

Swaps

Salted butter - Only have unsalted butter? Then swap the salted butter with 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter and a pinch of sea salt.
Making your own pesto? Swap basil for arugula, Swiss chard or kale
Try other greens - No spinach? Swap chard, kale or arugula in place for the spinach. It will give it great flavor and color just like spinach.
Try other veggies - Don’t pack away this recipe once summer is over! In the fall, try roasted butternut squash, caramelized onion and kale with a sage pesto. In the winter, go for a broccoli, cauliflower and sundried tomato pesto, and in spring go for an asparagus/pea with a light lemon parsley pesto. The method is the same- just let the produce guide you.
Try other cheeses - Not a fan of goat cheese? Equally swap goat cheese with cream cheese, boursin or feta.

FAQ

What types of noodles should I use? We prefer no-boil lasagna noodles for the ease of assembly, but you can certainly use noodles and boil or use fresh pasta to assemble or fresh pasta sheets. For dry pasta (non-no boil) boil until very al dente and cook about 3 minutes less than the package indicates. Dry them well after boiling by layer in a single layer on clean kitchen towels and you may need to use slightly less goat cheese sauce
For fresh pasta skip pre-cooking, layer it directly into lasagna and you may need to reduce sauce slightly since fresh pasta has more moisture. Finally, increase baking time by about 10 minutes since fresh pasta will just need more time to soften.

Can I use store-bought pesto or homemade pesto? Yes! This recipe can use either! You can even use a sun-dried tomato pesto if you prefer.

Is this recipe gluten-free? This recipe is not gluten-free, but you can swap the flour with a gluten free option and the noodles with a gluten-free version.

What can I substitute for ricotta? You can swap cottage cheese, mascarpone or vegan ricotta. Our first choice would be cottage cheese. Just take the cottage cheese and blend in a blender or food processor to make it creamy and smooth.

How to freeze summer lasagna?

Our favorite way to freeze our Summer Vegetable Lasagna with our Souper Cubes 2-cup Tray, place lids on, label, freeze, and store in containers or transfer to freezer bags.
First, assemble the lasagna into each compartment of the Souper Cubes tray up to the desired fill line. Place the lid on top. Label the lid with our labeling tape or water-based paint makers.

Set the tray flat in your freezer and stack remaining trays on top, freeze overnight for up to 3-4 months. Once the food is solid, you can pop out the cubes and store them in labeled freezer-safe bags so you can wash and reuse your Souper Cubes trays for another meal.

This recipe will yield four 2-cup portions of summer lasagna. This recipe can easily be doubled to make larger batches.

4 frozen lasagnas transfered to freezer vaccum bags

You can leave your meal in the Souper Cubes trays, but then that ties up your trays for freezing other meals until you use your Vegetable Lasagna with Goat Cheese and Pesto. We suggest transferring the lasagna components to a freezer-safe bag, such as a reusable bag, zippered bag, or vacuum-sealed bag for longer storage.

How long does lasagna last in the freezer? We say 3-4 months for optimal freshness. However, as long as it has been consistently frozen, it’s safe to eat indefinitely. For longer term storage transfer frozen cubes to a vacuum sealed bag for best results and to prevent freezer burn.

How to reheat frozen summer lasagna? When it’s time to reheat your vegetable lasagna, you will want to pull it from the freezer and transfer it to the fridge to thaw. This lets you cut down on the reheating process. However, if you forget to thaw in advance, that’s okay too! Depending if you baked after assembly or did not, will determine how you can reheat the lasagna.

Lasgana out of Souper Cubes Tray into Baking dish with Bread sliced on cutting board

If you froze your lasagna assembled but not baked: You can go directly from the freezer to heating in the oven. Simply pop out the cubes and separately place in a heat proof container or baking dish, cover and bake on 350F, until bubbling and an instant thermometer registers 165F, about 55 minutes. Turn oven to low broil (no more than 450), remove cover, and brown cheese, about 5 minutes. Pro Tip: While the oven is preheating, for a head start, take your lasagna out of the trays and place into 5-inch square baking dishes into the microwave and heat for 4-5 minutes on 50 % to thaw slightly before placing into the oven. This will reduce you cook time about 15 minutes.

If you baked your lasagna before freezing: After assembling, baking & freezing in our trays, transfer the lasagna to its own oven safe dish or our 5-inch square baking dishes and cover, and let defrost in the refrigerator overnight. Then place in a preheated oven at 325F on the middle rack, covered for about 30 minutes or until it registers 165F when a thermometer is inserted into the center of each dish. Turn oven to low broil, remove cover, and brown cheese, about 5 minutes. If you are using a microwave you can go directly from the freezer to heating in the microwave, simply pop out the cubes and place in a microwave container or Souper Cubes baking dish, cover and microwave on 50% power, for about 10 minutes to thaw completely. Then reheat in the microwave on high, for about 6 minutes. This will reduce your reheat time about 10 minutes.

Vegetable Lasagna Featuring Goat Cheese and Pesto

Servings

4

Prep Time

30 minutes

Cook Time

75 minutes

This vegetable lasagna with goat cheese and pesto is loaded with peak-season produce, creamy cheeses, and hearty vegetables for a vegetarian dish that’s every bit as satisfying as the classic. It’s make-ahead friendly, endlessly customizable, and perfect for swapping in your favorite roasted veggies.

Image of Vegetable Lasagna Featuring Goat Cheese and Pesto

Ingredients

3 cups sliced (about ¼ inch) fresh zucchini or summer squash (from 2-8 oz.)
3 cups quartered fresh crimini mushrooms (about 8 each)
1 ½ cups chopped red bell peppers (1-9 oz, medium)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons sea salt, divided
¾ teaspoon freshly ground pepper, divided
2 tablespoons salted butter
⅓ cup finely chopped yellow onion
1 small clove garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk
½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon with microplaner)
¾ cup goat cheese
4 cups (4 oz.) fresh spinach
1-15 ounce (2 cups) whole milk ricotta
½ cup basil pesto (homemade or store-bought)
1 large egg
½ teaspoon red pepper chili flakes (optional)
16 sheets no-boil lasagna noodles (from 1-16 oz. box)
16 ounces whole milk part-skim mozzarella, shredded (about 4 cups)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

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Directions

Prepare the roasted vegetables - Preheat oven 375F. Line a large-rimmed baking tray with aluminum foil.
Toss zucchini, mushrooms, and peppers with oil, 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon and pepper and spread evenly on the tray, until coated and place in a preheated oven until lightly browned and tender, about 45 minutes. Set aside and cool.
Prepare the goat cheese sauce - Melt butter on medium heat, in a medium saucepot. Add onions and garlic on and cook until translucent, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Add flour to the medium saucepot until coated and light brown, about 2 minutes. Slowly, whisk in the milk, until you have a thin batter like consistency, about 3 minutes. Turn off heat and stir in the goat cheese, zest and ½ teaspoon salt. Set aside.
Prepare ricotta layer - Boil 4 quarts salted water in a medium pot and prepare a fine-mesh strainer placed over a larger bowl with ice water. Add spinach to the large pot, until just tender but vibrant, about 5 seconds. Remove using the fine-mesh strainer or tongs, remove the spinach from the pot, and shock in the cold ice water. Remove the spinach from the ice water (discard the ice water) and squeeze firmly with your hands to remove the excess water. Place in the fine mesh strainer over the bowl to continue to drain. Once drained, chop the spinach slightly and place back into the bowl.
Mix ricotta cheese, pesto, egg, chili flakes, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper to the bowl with the spinach, until combined. Set aside.
Assemble Lasagna - Spread about 1 tablespoon goat cheese sauce in the bottom of 2-Souper Cubes 2 -cup Trays. Then add one layer of lasagna noodles, by breaking one lasagna noodle in half, overlapping slightly to ensure coverage and placing over the sauce. Next, spread about 3 tablespoons of ricotta mix. Top with ¼ cup mixed cooked vegetables on top of the ricotta layer and dollop with 2 tablespoons of goat cheese sauce. Sprinkle on about ¼ cup mozzarella cheese and 1 tablespoon parmesan cheese. Press down slightly. Repeat the process 2 more times (not including the first tablespoon goat cheese sauce on the bottom). Finally, add one final layer of lasagna noodles, by breaking one lasagna noodle in half, overlapping slightly to ensure coverage and sprinkle remaining ¼ cup mozzarella and remaining 1 tablespoon Parmesan on top.

Recipe Note

Assembly & Storage

Build the layers of the lasagna directly into the wells of your Souper Cubes 2-cup Trays. For this recipe you will need two Souper Cubes 2-cup trays, which will give you 4 portions.

Place the trays with labeled lids in the freezer overnight to fully freeze.

Allow the trays to stand on the counter for 5 minutes before removing the lid and pop out the frozen cubes. This will allow the cubes to pop out much easier for you.

Optional: Pop-out the cubes and transfer them to freezer-safe bags. Label and return back to the freezer.

Reheating

When you are ready to bake, remove your lasagna from the freezer to thaw, ideally for a few hours to overnight. Preheat the oven to 350F, then bake until the thermometer registers 165F and is bubbling on the edges, for about 30 minutes.

Alternatively, you can bake from frozen, simply place the frozen lasagna into Souper Cubes 5-inch baking dish, place in a preheated oven to 350F, then bake until the thermometer registers 165F and is bubbling on the edges, for about 45 minutes.

Recipe Notes

This Summer Vegetable Lasagna is packed with summer vegetables, but can be adapted for any time of the year for any seasonal vegetable. Roasting the vegetables keeps it packed with flavor and doesn’t make the lasagna watery. Check out our other freezer-safe meals and learn how to handcraft more delicious freezer-friendly meals with our variety of tasty recipes.