There’s nothing like a cozy, cheesy chicken lasagna to keep you warm when temperatures drop. A twist on a traditional lasagna, white chicken lasagna consists of a rich spinach and ricotta mixture, tender chicken, and creamy white sauce layered between lasagna noodles. A generous sprinkle of mozzarella cheese forms a mouthwatering, gooey golden brown topping.
This delicious creamy chicken lasagna recipe is perfect to feed a small crowd. It also freezes and reheats beautifully, so feel free to freeze some for another meal later on. You can also make it ahead of time! For more chicken casserole recipes, try my chicken divan, chicken spaghetti, and chicken casserole.
Ingredients
Cream sauce — you need butter for richness, onion and garlic to load the sauce with flavor, and all-purpose flour for thickening, along with chicken broth, whole milk, a few seasonings, and parmesan cheese.
Spinach — use frozen chopped spinach for the ricotta cheese mixture. Be sure to thaw it first and remove as much liquid as you can.
Cheeses — you’ll need creamy whole milk ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, and mozzarella cheese for melty goodness between the layers, plus more for the golden brown topping.
Herbs and spices — you need fresh parsley, salt, dried basil, and black pepper.
Egg — helps to bind the ricotta mixture for sturdy slices.
Noodles — lasagna noodles will need to be boiled before the casserole goes into the oven.
Chicken — you need shredded cooked chicken. This is a great opportunity to use up leftover chicken or a store-bought rotisserie chicken.
How To Make Creamy Chicken Lasagna
1. To make the cream sauce, melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 3 minutes. Add the flour and cook for 3 more minutes, whisking constantly.
2. Whisk in the chicken broth, whole milk, salt, pepper, and basil. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook, whisking often, for about 5 minutes, until thickened. Whisk in the parmesan cheese and allow it to melt. Remove the cream sauce from the heat.
3. To make the ricotta cheese mixture, start by squeezing as much moisture as you can from the thawed spinach.
4. Combine the spinach, ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, parsley, salt, basil, pepper, and egg in a medium bowl. Stir to combine.
5. Cook the noodles according to the package instructions. Drain and rinse them under cold water. Spread ½ cup of the cream sauce on the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish.
6. Place 3 noodles side-by-side so the bottom of the dish is covered.
7. Spread half of the ricotta mixture over the noodles.
8. Place half of the chicken evenly over the ricotta mixture.
9. Pour one-third of the cream sauce over the chicken. Repeat by placing 3 noodles in the dish and spreading the rest of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Add the remaining chicken and one-third of the cream sauce over the chicken. Top with the last 3 lasagna noodles and the remaining cream sauce.
10. Sprinkle mozzarella on top. Cover the baking dish with foil and bake at 375°F for 25 minutes. Uncover and continue baking for 20 minutes. For a golden brown top, broil on high for 2 to 3 minutes. Let the lasagna sit for at least 15 minutes before serving.
Save Time And Use A Rotisserie Chicken
One of the best time-saving tips for this white chicken lasagna recipe is to use shredded rotisserie chicken instead of cooking your own. You can use a mixture of light and dark meat. Similarly, if you have any leftover roasted chicken, air fryer chicken breasts, or baked chicken thighs in the fridge, feel free to shred them and use them in this recipe.
Tips For Assembling The Layers
- Rinse the noodles with cold water after cooking to keep them from sticking together.
- Spread cheese sauce in the bottom of the pan. This keeps the lasagna sheets from moving around when you layer on top of them. It also prevents the noodles from sticking to the baking dish.
- Lay noodles in a single layer. If they are too wide or long, trim the noodles so they fit in the baking pan without overlapping much.
Variations
- Add fresh herbs: 2 teaspoons of chopped thyme, rosemary, or chives are great options to add to the sauce or ricotta mixture.
- Add mushrooms: Slice 8 ounces of mushrooms and saute them with garlic before adding them as a layer to the lasagna.
- Add artichoke hearts: Sprinkle chopped artichoke hearts on the spinach-ricotta mixture between each layer. You can use canned or marinated artichokes, and be sure to drain them well.
- Add different vegetables: Use other sauteed greens or swap the spinach for shredded zucchini. Squeeze the liquid from the shredded zucchini before using it. To make this more veggie-heavy, you can also add your favorite vegetables like roasted carrots and broccoli.
Can I Use No-Boil Or Oven Ready Noodles?
No, this recipe was developed for regular lasagna noodles that are boiled before you assemble the lasagna. No-boil or oven-ready noodles will not work as they need extra moisture, which this recipe does not account for, so you can end up with a dry lasagna and undercooked noodles.
How To Store And Reheat Leftovers
Refrigerating: Once cooled completely, cover the casserole dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate the chicken lasagna for up to 4 days. Or, transfer leftovers to an airtight container and refrigerate.
Freezing: You can freeze individual servings or the entire chicken lasagna. To freeze individual servings, slice the lasagna and freeze the slices in freezer containers. To freeze the whole lasagna, wrap the baking dish well in a few layers of plastic wrap and aluminum foil. Either way, it freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge for several hours before reheating.
Reheating: Reheat leftover white sauce chicken lasagna at 350°F until bubbly and the center reaches 165°F on an instant-read thermometer. To reheat individual servings, place the slices of lasagna in smaller oven-safe dishes. Add a tablespoon of water or milk to the dish to add moisture back, as the noodles will have absorbed some of it while it sat in the refrigerator. Cover tightly with foil and reheat in the oven. If reheating frozen chicken lasagna, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator before following the reheating guidelines.
Pro Tips For Making This Recipe
- Squeeze the spinach well to remove any extra moisture before adding it to the ricotta mixture. The excess moisture can make the lasagna watery instead of lucious and creamy.
- Use freshly grated cheese if possible. Pre-shredded cheese has anti-clumping agents, which means it doesn’t melt as nicely. It’s fine to use in a time crunch, but buying a block and shredding it on a box grater will be worth the little bit of extra effort!
- Use a deep 9×13-inch baking dish. If you don’t have a deep one (2½” to 3” deep), place the baking dish on a rimmed sheet pan to catch any drippings that may bubble out.
- To keep the foil from sticking to the cheese: Arrange 4 toothpicks, evenly spaced, in the lasagna before loosely covering it with foil to bake. Remove them after the foil is removed.
- For a golden top, broil the dish on high for 2 to 3 minutes at the end of baking. Keep a close eye on it, as it can burn very quickly.
- Let the chicken lasagna sit for 15 minutes to give it a chance to both cool and set up. It will stay hot for up to an hour. Take the resting time to make a batch of homemade garlic bread to serve with it!
Frequently Asked Questions
You can use other kinds of cheeses that melt well in place of the mozzarella if you like. A few options are cheddar, young gouda, provolone, fontina, or Monterey Jack. You can also swap the ricotta cheese for cottage cheese.
Yes, just like my classic lasagna, this white lasagna is a great make-ahead dish! You can assemble the chicken lasagna completely up to 48 hours in advance and store it in the refrigerator. Set the dish out at room temperature for 1 hour before baking, and then bake as written in the recipe.
You can also assemble the lasagna and freeze it before baking. Wrap it well with plastic wrap and aluminum foil before freezing. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then set it out an hour before baking.
Yes, you can use gluten-free lasagna sheets. Just keep in mind the texture will likely be a bit different from traditional noodles. For a completely gluten-free chicken lasagna, use a gluten-free flour blend in place of the all-purpose flour for the sauce.
If you love this recipe try these out!
If you’ve tried this chicken lasagna recipe, then don’t forget to rate it and let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
Chicken Lasagna Recipe
Ingredients
Cream sauce:
- ¼ cup butter (57g)
- 1 medium onion chopped (240g)
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- ½ cup all-purpose flour (50g)
- 2½ cups chicken broth (600mL)
- 1½ cups whole milk (360mL)
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese (20g)
Ricotta cheese mixture:
- 10 ounces frozen chopped spinach thawed
- 1 (15-ounce, 425g) container ricotta cheese
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (224g)
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese (20g)
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 large egg
Lasagna assembly:
- 9 lasagna noodles (225g)
- 4 cups shredded cooked chicken (623g)
- 1½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese (168g)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Season it with salt.
For the cream sauce:
- Place the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once it has melted, add the onion and garlic and cook for 3 minutes. Add the flour and cook for 3 more minutes, whisking constantly. Whisk in the broth, milk, salt, pepper, and basil. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook, whisking frequently, for about 5 minutes, until thickened. Add the parmesan and cook, whisking constantly, for about 1 minute, until it melts into the sauce. Remove from the heat.
For the ricotta cheese mixture:
- Place the spinach on a lint-free kitchen towel or a large piece of cheesecloth and squeeze out as much liquid as possible.
- Combine the drained spinach, ricotta cheese, mozzarella, parmesan, parsley, salt, basil, pepper, and egg in a medium bowl. Stir well to combine.
To assemble the lasagna:
- Cook the lasagna noodles according to the package instructions. Drain and rinse them under cold water.
- Pour ½ cup of the cream sauce on the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish. Place 3 noodles side-by-side to cover the whole base of the dish. Spread half of the ricotta mixture over noodles. Place half of the chicken evenly over the ricotta mixture, then pour one third of the cream sauce over the chicken. Repeat by placing 3 noodles side-by-side in the dish and spreading the remaining ricotta mixture over noodles. Add the remaining chicken and one third of the cream sauce over the chicken. Top with the remaining 3 noodles and the remaining cream sauce. Sprinkle the top with the mozzarella.
- Cover the dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Uncover, and continue baking for 20 minutes. For a golden brown top, broil on high for 2 to 3 more minutes. Let the lasagna sit for at least 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Squeeze the spinach well to remove any extra moisture before adding it to the ricotta mixture. The excess moisture can make the lasagna watery instead of lucious and creamy.
- Use freshly grated cheese if possible. Pre-shredded cheese has anti-clumping agents, which means it doesn’t melt as nicely. It’s fine to use in a time crunch, but buying a block and shredding it on a box grater will be worth the little bit of extra effort!
- Use a deep 9×13-inch baking dish. If you don’t have a deep one (2½” to 3” deep), place the baking dish on a rimmed sheet pan to catch any drippings that may bubble out.
- To keep the foil from sticking to the cheese: Arrange 4 toothpicks, evenly spaced, in the lasagna before loosely covering it with foil to bake. Remove them after the foil is removed.
- For a golden top, broil the dish on high for 2 to 3 minutes at the end of baking. Keep a close eye on it, as it can burn very quickly.
- Let the chicken lasagna sit for 15 minutes to give it a chance to both cool and set up. It will stay hot for up to an hour. Take the resting time to make a batch of homemade garlic bread to serve with it!
Leave a Reply