This recipe comes from the Meal Makeover Mom’s, No Whine with Dinner. This cookbook is a goldmine!
I have this thing for slow cooker lasagna. It’s so easy and it comes out surprisingly good. Unlike my other slow cooker veggie lasagna, this one is made with no-boil noodles. It has a great flavor and consistency and I ate it for lunch for 3 days straight. This is soft enough for beginner eaters — and can easily be pureed if needed.
I want to say my kids gobbled it up but they opted for the bread and fruit I served it with. That’s okay, they’ll get another chance to eat it.
Enjoy!
Slow Cooker Spinach Lasagna
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Serves: 8
Ingredients
- 10-ounce box frozen chopped spinach
- 15-ounce container part-skim ricotta cheese
- ⅓ cup 1% low-fat milk
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
- 8 ounce can no salt added tomato sauce
- 8 or 9-ounce box dried no-boil lasagna noodles
- 26-ounce jar pasta sauce
- 2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Drain spinach in a colander. Press with the back of a large spoon to remove the excess moisture.
- In a large bowl, stir together the spinach, ricotta, milk, and Parmesan cheese until well combined. Set aside.
- Lightly oil or coat the bottom and sides of a 5 or 6-quart slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray. Pour the tomato sauce into the slow cooker bowl, and top with one fourth noodles. Cover as much of the sauce as possible by breaking some of the noodles into pieces (this will be hard for you neat freaks -- the noodles can overlap and it will still turn out).
- Spoon ½ cup pasta sauce over the noodles, then top with one-third of the ricotta mixture (about 1 cup), and ½ cup mozzarella cheese. Repeat two more times with a fourth of the noodles, ½ cup sauce, 1 cup ricotta mixture, and ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese.
- For the final layer, cover with the remaining noodles, 1 cup sauce, and the remaining mozzarella cheese. Cover and cook on low until the noodles absorb the sauce and are tender, about 2½ hours. Turn off the slow cooker and let the noodles absorb any remaining sauce, about 15 minutes.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 340 Fat: 11g Sodium: 580mg Fiber: 3g Protein: 21g
For more easy recipes and tips on how to serve meals to kids, check out Maryann’s book The Family Dinner Solution: How to Create a Rotation of Dinner Meals Your Family Will Love
Maryann, this looks amazing! This week I bought all the ingredients to make veggie lasagna (the long traditional way in the oven with bechamel sauce too) this looks WAY easier and healthier. Do you think it would work if I threw in a layer of lightly grilled eggplant or zucchini too?
Also, did you miss the slight baked crunch you get making it in a traditional oven? I worry I would miss that. I guess I’m just going to have to try it and see 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
Jackie — I guess I don’t make traditional lasagna enough because I don’t really notice (or miss) the crunch. You should try it…I’m sure the eggplant or zucchini would work fine. Let me know how it turns out!
Did you try the recipe with eggplant?
No I haven’t. I’m sure it’d be good.
I’ve been intrigued by the notion of lasagna in the crockpot, but I have such concerns with it not getting the brown and bubbly part on top. I have a veggie lasagna that my husband is a huge fan of, but it is something of a pain to make. From your picture it seems to keep it’s shape somewhat when you cut it….yes? Thanks for sharing!
Michelle — you just need to let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes and then it’s pretty easy to cut. It does hold its shape pretty well. The other one does too.
I’ve always wanted to try a slow cooker lasagna but agree with Jackie I’d miss the crispy cheese crunch. But if it makes my life easier as far as time, then I can live without the golden brown crispy cheese crunch. 🙂
Maryann – I tried this recipe and it turned out great! In fact, my husband said it was the tastiest lasagna I’ve ever cooked! The slow cooker definitely gave it great flavor. My son (four years old) even liked it! I definitely plan to make it again.
Also, just wanted to follow up and say that it did have a crust to it when it came out of the slow cooker – not as much as a traditional oven, but plenty enough to make me feel happy and like I wasn’t missing anything. Thanks!
Glad it turned out! If you haven’t try the other slow cook veggie lasagna…
Guess it was lasagna night. I also made this today and it was fabulous! I added a layer of thinly sliced carrots and zucchinni after the spinach/ricotta layer. Even better, my 3 year old helped make it with me. She took a few bites, said she liked it, then changed her mind. She is dead set against spinach. Oh well, we keep on trying. Thanks again for a great recipe!
I loved reading these comments and am so pleased everyone liked the Mile-High Spinach Lasagna from No Whine with Dinner. Thanks for posting it Maryann. I LOVE the addition of carrots and zucchini! I always find that a crust forms around the edges where the noodles meet up with the crock. FYI: My boys don’t typically like ricotta in lasagna, but they make an exception with this recipe!
Liz — thanks so much for your wonderful book. It’s amazing!
Oh yeah! I have found the next family dinner for my husband & 18 mo old. I’ve wanted try lasagna but I thought traditional lasagna might be too labor intensive after a full day at work.
I made this tonight and it was SO good. I also appreciate that is was something that I could do without messing up. I am a kitchen klutz and it made me proud to put some dinner on the table for once. And a healthy dinner at that. Thank you!
Glad to hear it Kim. I am the same way — klutzy in the kitchen. That’s why I love the slow cooker!
All last week I’ve been getting everyone’s comments on the slow cooker lasagna and I made some. It was really delicious, I made it gluten free for my one year old and it did crust up on the sides. I made mine a bit different and will share the post later this week, it was a big hit with my family! My son wanted the leftovers in his school lunch!
Reading all the wonderful comments on this recipe motivated me to try it. 🙂
So glad it turned out!
Made this today and it is sooo yummy! So much easier and neater in the crockpot also. This one will definitely be going into the rotation! Thank you for sharing!
I love hearing al the success stories. Thanks Meal Makeover Moms!
I printed your tempting recipes but the photos interfere. Is there a way to print the actual text recipe only?
I’m excited to spread my crockpot wings!
Norma
Let me look into it…
I tool the images out. Let me know if that works