This amazing Chicken lasagna will blow your mind! I promise! Layers of pasta with tender chicken and spinach in a luscious cheesy garlic cream sauce. Dinner has never been so good.
Chicken lasagna will bring your next Sunday supper or dinner party to life! Whenever I’m having a bunch of people over, I pull out my list of show-stopping pasta recipes — and this one is always at the top!
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What I Love About This Recipe
Have you ever heard anyone say “No, I don’t like lasagna?” EXACTLY!
- Crowd-pleasing
- Three types of CHEESE
- Creamy Garlic White Sauce
- Stores really well
How To Make Chicken Lasagna Recipe
All lasagna recipes are, at their heart, the same: make the delicious cheese sauce, make delicious tomato sauce, layer with noodles, bake, indulge!
For this recipe, prep your ingredients and get yourself all set up so you can layer with ease. Start with the sauce, then noodles, ricotta mixture, chicken, extra mozzarella, and more sauce. Repeat in that pattern until you fill the dish, being sure to end on a layer of sauce and cheese.
Bake, cool for about 15 minutes, and enjoy!
Homemade Lasagna Recipe Notes:
Ingredient Notes:
Ricotta: This recipe uses whole milk ricotta (not low fat ricotta). Why? One word: FLAVOR! Whole milk ricotta is made from, you guessed it, whole milk, which means it’s packed with richness and creaminess.
Noodles: Arguably the most important part of the whole lasagna dish, lasagna noodles comes in two types: regular and no-boil. This recipe is written for the regular noodles. There isn’t enough liquid in the sauce to use the no-boil type.
Be careful to not over-cook the noodles or your finished dish could end up mushy. Also, after the noodles have drained don’t leave them in the colander in a clump. Instead, drape them over the sides of the colander to keep them from becoming a stuck together mess. This will ensure you can actually use them for layering!
Can You Freeze This?
YES! Wrap tightly with plastic wrap then wrap with aluminum foil. How do you get the plastic wrap to stick you ask? Well here’s the trick: Lay a double wide strip of plastic wrap 8 inches longer than your casserole dish flat on the counter. Set the casserole dish in the center of the plastic. Tightly fold up all the sides. Then cover the top with more plastic wrap. Works like magic because plastic sticks best to itself and not as well to glass or ceramic! Just make sure to cool it first! The frozen lasagna will last up to three months.
When you’re ready, pop your frozen lasagna in the oven and bake at 350 for about 40 minutes or until heated through.
Make Ahead Tips:
The best way to speed up your lasagna process is to make the component ingredients ahead of time! The cheese sauce and ricotta mixture will keep in the fridge for up to four days. The only element I wouldn’t recommend making ahead of time is the pasta — cooked noodles on their own do not keep well!
How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge?
Lasagna leftovers can hang out in the fridge for up to five days. Longer than that and the sauce starts to separate, adding excess water to your leftovers container. That water soaks into the noodles and makes them extra mushy, which works against that lovely chewy texture we all adore!
What Other Pasta Casserole Recipes Can I Make?
Want to stock up on your freezer casseroles? Look no further!
Chicken noodle casserole is a delicious oven-baked play on chicken noodle soup. Chicken cordon bleu casserole takes the cheesy, ham-packed favorite and bakes it up all warm and gooey. Million dollar spaghetti is one of my most popular recipes, and with very good reason. Imagine layered spaghetti with a luscious, creamy, cheesy center! It promises to become an instant family favorite.
Chicken Lasagna
Ingredients
Ricotta Filling:
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 24 ounces whole milk ricotta
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup mozzarella, shredded
- 2 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and added to a fine sieve and pressed very firmly with the back of a large spoon to remove all moisture.
- 1/2 cup fresh basil, julienned
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
Sauce:
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon garlic
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups half and half
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 cup Parmesan
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Layering Ingredients:
- 12 lasagna noodles, cooked and cooled
- 1 rotisserie chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces, skin, and bones removed and discarded
- 16 ounces mozzarella, shredded
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350. Spray a deep 9X13 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
- Stir together all the ingredients for the ricotta filling in a mixing bowl until well combined; set aside.
- In a large, high sided skillet, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft, about 8-10 minutes. Sprinkle flour over onions and cook, whisking constantly for 1 minute. Remove pan from heat and slowly whisk in half and half and chicken broth until smooth.
- Return skillet to low heat and stir in Parmesan, salt, and pepper, then simmer gently until cheese is melted.
Assembly:
- Spread about 1 cup of the sauce on of the prepared baking dish. Layer 4 noodles to cover the bottom of dish, then half the ricotta mixture, half the chicken, 1/3 of the mozzarella, and 1/3 of the sauce. Repeat the layers again. Top with remaining 4 noodles, then the remaining sauce and remaining cheese.
- Cover lasagna with foil and bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for 20-30 minutes or until the lasagna is bubbly and the cheese is golden.
Nutrition
More Lasagna Recipes
Want to go lasagna crazy and whip together a bunch of variations? You HAVE to try these:
- Lasagna Roll Ups – So fun to make with kids!
- Taco Lasagna – Tacos and pasta? Always a hit
- Lasagna Soup – All the great flavors in a soul-warming soup!
- Buffalo Chicken Lasagna – Like spice? How hot can you handle it?
- Mushroom Lasagna – Bring lasagna down to earth with mushrooms!
Conclusion
Chicken lasagna has to be one of my favorite lasagna versions! While we all love tender chicken, I gotta admit, I love that cheese sauce best.
What’s your favorite part? Let me know in the comments!
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