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This spinach lasagna recipe has melty layers of ricotta, mozzarella, and feta cheese, with savory spinach, parmesan, tomato sauce, and tender lasagna noodles cooked together in the crock pot. All you have to do is add everything to the pot and cook!
Crockpot lasagna is the easiest lasagna you’ll ever make, and it always hits the spot. If you’re looking for a traditional oven recipe, try eggplant lasagna or a classic and meaty lasagna bolognese.
If I had a quarter for every time I used spinach and feta cheese in a recipe, I’d most likely buy MORE spinach and feta. I love this combination in my spinach pie, quiche, and frittata recipes. For this crock pot spinach lasagna recipe, I upped the ante with a mix of feta, ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese, tucked between savory tomato sauce and lasagna noodles. It’s creamy, cheesy, and especially easy since I can set this lasagna to cook and walk away!
Why You Should Make This Spinach Lasagna Recipe
- One pot. I love a good set-it-and-forget-it crock pot recipe, and lasagna is no exception. It’s the best. No stirring, no boiling, no rinsing, no waiting. Just hello, Miss Crock Pot, have these delicious ingredients. See you in a few hours!
- Loads of flavor. This spinach lasagna tastes like it took all day to make, and technically it did, but without any effort. Instead, leave the crock pot to do its thing, and all the classic Italian flavors mingle for hours while the cheese gets melty and bubbly and the noodles cook perfectly al dente.
- 4 different kinds of cheese. I mean, does a recipe get any better? The combination of melting cheeses and tomato sauce simmering for hours makes the house smell incredible. You’ll be craving this lasagna long before it’s done.
Ingredients You’ll Need
I always used to joke that this spinach lasagna recipe was so easy, that even my 10-year-old could make it! Time flies, but the ingredients haven’t changed. Here are some notes on what you’ll need, and you’ll find a full list with amounts in the printable recipe card below the post.
- Tomato Sauce – Choose your favorite jarred tomato sauce, passata, or marinara sauce from the store. If you have a homemade tomato sauce recipe, go ahead and use it!
- Lasagna Noodles – These no-boil lasagna noodles have changed my life. They save so much time whenever I make lasagna, and they work perfectly in this crockpot recipe. Highly recommend.
- Ricotta Cheese – Ricotta is a mild Italian whey cheese with a light and creamy flavor. If can’t find ricotta, mascarpone or cottage cheese make good substitutes.
- Feta Cheese – Optional, but I love the saltiness of crumbled feta in this lasagna. You can always replace feta with extra ricotta, mozzarella, or another kind of cheese.
- Garlic – Freshly chopped.
- Dried Herbs – Dried oregano and dried parsley, or you can use Italian seasoning. You could also swap out dried for finely chopped fresh herbs.
- Eggs – Lightly beaten, to help bind the ingredients in the cheese mixture.
- Spinach – Fresh or frozen baby spinach leaves. If you’re using frozen spinach, be sure to thaw it completely, then drain and pat it dry first.
- Mozzarella – I recommend low-moisture mozzarella cheese, shredded fresh from the block. In a pinch, you could use shredded white cheddar.
- Parmesan – Rounding out the quadruple-threat of cheese in this lasagna is freshly grated parmesan, or pecorino.
How to Make Spinach Lasagna in the Crock Pot
This lasagna was on my dinner rotation for years before I finally tried it in my crock pot. It barely took any work, and the flavors were even better than I remembered. If you’ve never made a crock pot lasagna, prepare to be hooked. Here’s the quick rundown, layer-by-layer:
- Start with the tomato sauce. Spread the tomato sauce evenly into the bottom of a greased crock pot.
- Next, add the noodles. Arrange no-boil lasagna noodles over the sauce. You may need to break them up in order to fit in a single layer.
- Add the spinach and ricotta mixture. Mix the ricotta and feta cheese with the garlic, seasonings, and eggs, then fold in the spinach. Spread about ⅓ of the ricotta mixture over the noodles in the crock pot.
- Add mozzarella. Next, top the ricotta layer with mozzarella and parmesan, plus another layer of tomato sauce.
- Repeat. Start again with a fresh layer of lasagna noodles. Repeat the layers until you’ve used up the ingredients, ending with a final layer of noodles, followed by tomato sauce, and, finally, mozzarella cheese.
- Cook! With your lasagna assembled, cover and set the crock pot to cook on High for 3 ½ to 4 hours. As the final step, switch off the pot and let the lasagna stand for 45 minutes as the liquid absorbs. You’re ready to cut and serve!
Tips and Variations
- Prep the crock pot. Grease the bowl of your crockpot or slow cooker with cooking spray for easy cleanup.
- Cook on High. Most crock pots come with a High and Low setting. Lasagna really only needs about 3 ½ hours on High. Cooking on Low for a longer length of time results in a soggy lasagna. Save the low and slow method for a crock pot rump roast.
- Rest the lasagna afterward. This is an important step that lets the lasagna set up inside the crockpot, for clean, firm slices. 45 minutes usually does the trick. If you try to scoop it right away, it’ll be a gloopy mess (still delicious, mind you, but very gloopy).
- Layer in more flavor. Drizzle a little parsley pesto or spinach pesto in between the lasagna layers.
- Add veggies. Layer in sautéed mushrooms, diced zucchini, onions, or carrots. I recommend par-boiling or pre-cooking the veggies if you can, so they cook through evenly.
- Add protein. You can replace tomato sauce with another pasta sauce, like bolognese, or add ground beef, chicken, or Italian sausage along with the tomato sauce to make it meaty. If you add ground meat to this recipe, you’ll want to brown it in a skillet beforehand.
- More crock pot recipes. If you love this crock pot spinach lasagna recipe, try this crockpot lasagna soup, next!
Serving Suggestions
I love this spinach lasagna with a tomato burrata salad or leafy Mediterranean salad on the side. Serve it with a big platter of homemade focaccia bread or garlic breadsticks, with garlic butter sauce for dipping. Heaven! As for another easy veggie side, try steamed broccoli or roasted asparagus. These crab stuffed mushrooms are also a great starter! For dessert, wrap up the meal with fudgy brownies or a decadent dark hot chocolate.
How to Store and Reheat Lasagna
- Refrigerate. Allow the lasagna to cool completely to room temperature, and then scoop it out into an airtight container to keep in the fridge. It makes delicious leftovers for up to 4 days.
- Reheat. Warm the spinach lasagna covered in a baking dish at 350ºF for 15-20 minutes. You can also heat up portions in the microwave.
- Freeze. Store leftover lasagna frozen for up to 3 months and thaw it in the fridge before reheating.
More Lasagna Recipes
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Spinach Lasagna Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups tomato sauce
- 12 to 15 no boil lasagna noodles
- 32 ounces container light ricotta cheese
- 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste, I start with 3/4 teaspoon salt and add more if needed
- 3 to 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, or to taste
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 8 ounces fresh baby spinach
- 2½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
Instructions
- Grease the crock pot. Lightly coat the inside of the crock pot or slow cooker with cooking spray.
- Add tomato sauce. Spread 1 cup tomato sauce on the bottom of the pot. Arrange a layer of the no-boil lasagna noodles over the sauce. Set aside.
- Make the ricotta filling. In a large mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese, feta cheese, salt, pepper, chopped garlic, Italian seasoning, parsley, oregano, and eggs. Mix until thoroughly combined. Add the fresh spinach and mix until well incorporated.
- Assemble. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture over the pasta. Sprinkle a layer of mozzarella and 1/3 of the parmesan cheese over top. Top with a cup of tomato sauce. Repeat these layers until all the ingredients have been used up.
- Add a final layer. Top the lasagna with a layer of lasagna noodles covered with tomato sauce and sprinkled with mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
- Cook. Cover and cook on HIGH for 3.5 to 4 hours.
- Rest. Afterward, turn off the crock pot and let it rest for 45 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed. Cut and serve.
Equipment
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
Wondering if there is anything other than ricotta (or cottage cheese) I could use. Could I use extra mozzarella? For some reason ricotta and cottage cheese don’t sit well with me. Maybe I could just use a little less ricotta? I’m guessing I shouldn’t leave it out entirely. Suggestions? Thanks!
I made this for dinner tonight and now I look pregnant. It was that good.
Do I need to remove the stems from the spinach?
Not if you’re using baby spinach. I never do. 🙂
Has anyone prepped the night before and cooked the next morning? Wondering how the noodles hold up?
I’ve made this several times in the crock pot and it’s always delicious. I’m wondering if anyone has tried baking it in a traditional oven, and if so how the different cooking methods compare. I’ve never used the oven-ready lasagna in the oven, only in the slow cooker, so I’m just curious to hear how it comes out. And if you have baked it, any suggestions on time/temp, or just use the box directions?
Hi Can I use regular lasagna noodles instead of the no boil? I find the no boil ones don’t taste as good. THX
Hi! Honestly, I’m not sure if it would or wouldn’t work because I have never used other lasagna noodles in the crock pot. I’ve always used the no boil ones. Wish I had a better answer! :-/
I’m new to cooking and I had a lot of questions and couldn’t figure out how to leave a comment. At first I couldn’t figure out how to measure 8oz of spinach since I bought a 12 oz bag. I was going to measure just a cup of spinach, but that didn’t seem right. I ended up dumping out the bag and using half and then 1/3 of the other half. Seemed like a lot of spinach and it was REALLY tough to mix into the ricotta cheese. My other confusion was with the end of the layers. I put a cup of tomato sauce, the noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta, 2 – 1/3 cups of mozzarella (the bag said it had 8 servings of 1/3 cup each), and half of 1/4 cup of parmesan? it didn’t seem like a lot of parmesan. Then I poured my 2nd cup of tomato sauce, noodles, ricotta, mozzarella/parm. Then the 3rd cup of sauce, noodles, last third of riccotta, mozzarella/parm…then I got confused cuz I was down to my last cup of tomato sauce and I knew I had to top off the lasagna with noodles, tomato sauce, and cheese. But I was down to my last portions of cheese and sauce. Was I supposed to put another layer of noodles and then the remaining cup of tomato sauce and remaining cheese? I ended up putting 3/4 cup of tomato sauce, noodles, and the remaining 1/4 cup of tomato sauce. but the sauce didn’t seem to cover the whole layer so I added 1/4 cup extra (making the total tomato sauce use to 4 1/2 cups) then I topped it off with the rest of the mozzarella and parmesan. but the parmesan was barely anything so I added a few more sprinkles. I hope it turns out okay, but I really would like to know what i was really supposed to do after the third portion of ricotta mixture. Also how much salt and pepper do you suggest? And what is the best way to mix the spinach into the ricotta? was I supposed to chop the spinach? I used a fork to mix it. It took forever! Thank you so much for the recipe…smells good so far
Also…how many servings does this make? Thanks!
from perth western australia .. are no boil lasagna noodles the same as lasagna sheets please? Coles Woolworths our local supermarkets dont seem to know what they are?
They are the same as ‘oven ready.’ I’m trying this recipe out today!
Can this be made in a baking dish then frozen? I have made the crock pot version which is super yummy but need to make it for a large party this time. Hoping to freeze, then cook before guest arrive.
HI Natasha!! Yes, you can definitely freeze unbaked lasagna. Line a baking dish with heavy-duty nonstick aluminum foil and prepare the recipe as directed in the prepared baking dish. Freeze unbaked lasagna until firm. You need to then completely thaw it before baking. To thaw, keep it on the counter for a few hours. Hope this helps! 🙂
Hi
Can this be cooked on low for 7-8 hours instead of high for 3 1/2 to 4?
HI Kate! I have cooked this on low a couple of times and it was done in just around 6 hours.
Hi, I’m wondering if you use plain tomato sauce or a spaghetti sauce that is seasoned?
Hi Megan! I’ve used both, but if you like more flavor, definitely use the seasoned stuff! 😀
Is it really 32 ounces of ricotta? I can NOT find that large of a container anywhere….all packaged as 8 ounces. Just want to make sure. Making it now for our newly declared vegetarian teenage daughter.
Hi Penny! Yes, it is 32 ounces. If you can’t find the bigger containers, then see if you can use about 4 of the 8-ounce containers.
This was a hit at our house the other night. My husband declared that this should be on our repeat list! I love that everybody is eating spinach 🙂 also, I only had one bowl and he crockpot to clean! Much better than when I make our standard lasagna! Thank you
Hi Michelle!! SO happy to hear that you all enjoyed it! YAY! 🙂
I love this recipe. I’ve made it three times so far and it’s a keeper.
I usually use a box of noodles (usually place two whole ones, slightly overlapping and then a few broken ones for each layer), 1.5 large cans of sauce, about 5-6 oz of fresh baby spinach, and the rest as written.
Did you use regular lasagna noodles? Not pre cooked?
Hi!
The recipe calls for “no-boil lasagna noodles” – you can get those at any grocery store, but make sure that they are “NO-Boil”. You can also get them on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2GxLS03 (affiliate link)
I hope this helps. 😊