Light, cheesy, creamy and packed with summer flavours this Easy Courgette Lasagne recipe is the perfect make-ahead dinner recipe your family are going to ask for again and again! A classic lasagne is given a vegetarian twist with tender ribbons of courgette, rich mascarpone cheese and plenty of fresh basil.
Nothing beats a classic lasagne, but sometimes it's nice to change things up a bit. So say hello to our summer version of a classic lasagne: Courgette Lasagne!
Courgettes are both cooked down into the filling as well as layered with the lasagne sheets, making for a very courgette filled version of vegetable lasagne.
The quick cheats tomato and mascarpone sauce is lighter than a regular béchamel and suits this summery version of everyone’s favourite baked pasta!
Ingredients
- large courgettes
- olive oil (something mild and light for cooking)
- brown or white onion
- garlic cloves
- finely chopped tinned tomatoes (we like Mutti)
- caster sugar (granulated sugar is also fine)
- mascarpone
- mozzarella
- fresh basil
- parmesan (pecorino or grana padano would also work -- if you need this recipe to be vegetarian, make sure your cheese is too!)
- fresh lasagne sheets
Frequently Asked Questions
Fresh are best, but yes dried would also work -- just check it is cooked through with the tip of a sharp knife before serving! If it needs to go back in the oven, cover the top loosely with foil to stop it burning.
Yes -- you can make the lasagne a day ahead and leave it assembled in the fridge before baking.
We used a 28x23cm Falcon dish to bake this lasagne, but if you don't have one it will work in a 20x30cm baking dish.
Allowing the lasagne to cool a little helps it absorb a little extra cooking liquid which will help you get nice neat slices that won't collapse as you lift them out of the baking tray.
To speed up the process use a vegetable peeler to make courgette ribbons instead of slices, this will cut down on the cooking time. However, I we like this roasted courgette slice version better!
You Might Also Enjoy
- Cheat's White Sauce Lasagne
- Creamy Courgette Pasta Recipe with Lemon
- Easy Courgette and Sweetcorn Fritters
- Italian Courgette Scarpaccia
- Ricotta and Aubergine Baked Pasta Shells
- Courgette Ribbon Salad Recipe
Easy Courgette Lasagne
This simple, creamy Courgette Lasagne is perfect for summer packed with courgette flavour, fresh basil and a lighter, creamy tomato and mascarpone sauce.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: Serves 6
- Category: Dinner
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 4 large courgettes (3 x sliced into ½ cm strips, 1 x finely diced)
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 3 x 400g tins finely chopped tomatoes
- 1 tsp caster sugar
- 250g mascarpone
- 2 x balls mozzarella, drained and roughly torn
- 15g basil, leaves picked
- 70g parmesan, finely grated
- 300g fresh lasagne sheets (see note)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C fan.
- Start by placing the courgettes strips on a large lined baking tray (you may need x2 depending on size, or bake in batches) and drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Bake for 10-12 minutes until starting to soften. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
- In a large frying pan heat 2 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the onion, and fry on a medium low heat for 8-10 minutes until softening.
- Add the garlic, diced courgette and 1⁄2 teaspoon salt, cook for a further 10 minutes stirring often.
- Add a tin of chopped tomatoes and cook for a further 8-10 minutes. Meanwhile tip the remaining two tins of tomatoes in a large saucepan with 1⁄2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon sugar and cook on a medium heat for 10 minutes. Turn the heat off and use a stick blender to blitz until smooth. Stir through the tub of mascarpone.
- To assemble the lasagne, alternate the tomato courgette sauce with layers of pasta, strips of courgette, mascarpone sauce, basil leaves and torn mozzarella, seasoning with salt and pepper as you go. Reserve enough mascarpone to top the final pasta layer and sprinkle with the parmesan, torn mozzarella and any leftover basil leaves.
- Bake for 40 minutes until golden on top and bubbling.
- Leave to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving with a crisp green salad.
Notes
Fresh are best, but dried lasagne sheets would also work -- just check it is cooked through with the tip of a sharp knife before serving! If it needs to go back in the oven, cover the top loosely with foil to stop it burning.
Nat says
Have an allotment with an abundance of courgettes so this recipe was perfect. Easy to follow however mozzarella balls in ingredients list but not mentioned in method. Assumed you placed on top along with the parmesan. Wow the flavour was amazing.
Margie says
Oh good spot! thank you!! SO pleased you loved it xx
Olivia Carr-Archer says
This looks absolutely delicious, I.will be trying this tomorrow. Is it freezable and if so can you then cook from frozen or defrost before hand? Thanks so much
Margie Nomura says
That should be absolutely fine! I always tend to let things defrost beforehand as I think it often results in a better texture. But of course if you're in a hurry, I would think it would be okay! x