Creamy Chicken and Spinach Lasagna Recipe

Spinach lasagna is a tasty way to get your family to eat this nutritious veggie. Everyone has family favorite meals.

Mine rotate again and again, depending on how far back in my recipe file I can reach. My Aunt Carla, who is an amazing cook, wrote the rest of this post. Thank you to her for sharing her irresistible recipes with us!

Yesterday, I was searching for an old lasagna recipe I used to love to make for my family, and guess what? I found it!

After looking at it, I found that I could tweak it a bit more by adding chicken for more protein and spinach for a bigger kick of iron.

Spinach hosts 20% of the Daily Value of vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, magnesium, manganese, folate, and iron.

Who couldn’t use a few of these beauties hidden inside a yummy, creamy spinach lasagna? Give it a try!

If you’re looking for a tasty vegetarian option, give this broccoli pasta a try. With only 5 ingredients, it makes a great Meatless Monday meal!

Spinach Lasagna Recipe with Chicken and Broccoli

*Note, this large recipe fits nicely in a 15.5″ X 10″ baking pan/casserole dish, and can be halved. Do not half the sauce, though!

What you need for Spinach Lasagna

(Measurements in the printable recipe card below)

• Box of lasagna noodles
• 1 & 1/2 stick butter
• Chicken stock concentrate (like Better Than Bouillon)
• Flour
• Milk
• Dried garlic
• Dried thyme
• Salt and pepper
• Medium onion
• Ricotta cheese
• Rotisserie chicken
• Broccoli florets
• Frozen spinach
• Sliced mushrooms
• Swiss cheese
• Mozzarella cheese

Spinach Lasagna Directions

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.

Spray the baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

Cook the lasagna noodles until they are slightly tender. Do not overcook. Drain, and drizzle a little butter on them so they don’t stick.

Thaw broccoli and spinach separately in the microwave. Use the microwave rather than cooking them, as they will finish cooking in the oven.

Place thawed veggies into a mesh strainer and press until most of the residual water comes out. Lay veggies on a towel to further help release moisture. Set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the butter until melted and add the chopped onion. Sauté until onions are tender.

Add flour into the skillet with the butter and onions. Stir and cook until the mixture becomes paste-like.

Pour the milk into a measure cup and then add the chicken stock to it. Stir together.

Add the milk/stock blend into the flour mixture on the stove. Whisk to blend to a smooth consistency. If the sauce seems too think, add more milk.

Add salt, pepper, garlic, and thyme to the sauce and stir to combine. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, mix together the ricotta or cottage cheese, drained broccoli, drained spinach, sliced and drained mushrooms, and chicken pieces.

Time to assemble the lasagna!

Start with a layer of about 1/2 cup of sauce in the bottom of the baking pan.

Then, here is how I layered: 3 noodles on top of the sauce, 1/2 cup of the spinach/broccoli/chicken filling, 1/3 cup sauce, cheese slices – 3 of each flavor, 3 noodles, 1/2 cup of the spinach/broccoli/chicken filling, 1/3 cup sauce, cheese slices – 3 of each flavor, 3 noodles, 1/3 cup sauce, cheese slices – 3 of each flavor.

Cover loosely with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Spray the inside side of the foil before covering. Since cheese is the last layer, it will stick to the foil if it touches.

Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes or until it develops a golden crust on top.

Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

This post is updated from its original publish date of 11/01/2014 and was originally written by my Aunt Carla.

Recipe notes and FAQ

How do you soften lasagna noodles without boiling them?

If for some reason you don’t want to boil your lasagna noodles, you can just give them a 30-minute soak in warm water. They’ll soak up just as much water as they would have if they’d been boiled. 

Do you have to cook spinach before putting it in lasagna?

If you use the frozen kind like I did, just thaw it out and drain it thoroughly. However, if you use fresh spinach cook it first to get out all the extra water. 

Why is my lasagna so runny?

You probably didn’t drain the spinach well enough. Spinach has a lot of water. If you don’t drain it well, it can make your lasagna runny. 

What can I use instead of lasagna noodles?

If you don’t have lasagna noodles, you can turn this recipe into a bake using any kind of short noodle like macaroni, ziti, and the like.

Do you have to soften lasagna sheets?

If you want to skip boiling the lasagna, that’s okay as long as the noodle will be completely covered in sauce. The liquid in the sauce will be soaked up by the sheets as they cook. 

Pasta recipes to add to your meal plan

• Chicken and broccoli tortellini bake
• Turkey pasta with veggies and cheese
• Meatless kale pasta recipe
• Asparagus and ham pasta skillet
• Simple chicken pasta
• Marry me chicken

This delicious spinach lasagna pairs nicely with a fresh garden salad. Enjoy!