This dish was inspired by my Great-Great Aunt Olive’s “Stuffed Shells” recipe. I never met her, but I used to make her stuffed shells all the time. Then when we switched to whole foods I quickly learned that it’s nearly impossible to find whole-wheat jumbo pasta shells for some reason. So here is her recipe, re-invented into an even quicker and easier lasagna version. I hope your family enjoys it as much as mine does, and here’s a tip…make this dish in advance and either freeze or refrigerate the casserole prior to the baking step for an easy dinner!
White Chicken Lasagna
So here is her recipe, re-invented into an even quicker and easier lasagna version. I hope your family enjoys it as much as mine does, and here's a tip...
Ingredients
The Sauce
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons whole-wheat flour
- 3 cups milk
The Filling (and Noodles)
- 8 oz whole-wheat lasagna
- 2 cups chicken, cooked, and diced or shredded
- 4 cups spinach, sliced
- 6 ounces cream cheese, softened and cut into 1" chunks
- 1/2 cup whole-wheat breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- pepper, to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup parsley, chopped
- 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated, and divided
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Boil the lasagna noodles according to package directions. When done, drain and set aside.
- In a medium sauce pan over medium heat melt the butter for the sauce. Whisk in the flour and as soon as it browns (about 1 to 2 minutes) whisk in the milk. Bring the milk to a very light boil and whisk occasionally until it thickens, about 10 to 15 minutes.
- While your noodles and sauce are cooking go ahead and work on the filling. In a large bowl mix together the chicken, spinach, cream cheese, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, nutmeg, garlic, parsley and 1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese. Use your hands if you need to in order to make sure it's mixed thoroughly.
In a rectangular casserole dish layer the ingredients in this order sauce, noodles, sauce, chicken mixture, noodles, sauce, chicken mixture, noodles, and then sauce. Any noodles on the top that don't get covered in sauce could get crispy so be careful about even coverage. Top the whole thing off with the other 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese. Since I sometimes get confused about the order to layer lasagna ingredients I made you a little chart for this recipe (see the notes section).
- Bake at 400 degrees until brown on top, about 15 to 20 minutes. If your casserole was cold when you started (either from the fridge or defrosted completely from the freezer) then you'll need to increase the baking time.
Recipe Notes
We recommend organic ingredients when feasible.
Nutrition Facts
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I love your recipes I use several of them in my regular rotation! But this lasagna is definitely my families favorite! Super delicious! Thanks for the recipe ;)
This looks like a great recipe for using left-over Thanksgiving turkey but I’m wondering why you suggest using only organic ingredients at the end of the article.
Lisa uses organic ingredients, whenever possible, in all her recipes.
Made this tonight. Had trouble getting the sauce to thicken.
We liked it, but we found it really rich and heavy. Wondering if the way to balance that is to add an acid like lemon juice somewhere. Thoughts?
Hi. I use arrowroot powder for thickening. Not sure about adding the acid. You could cut back a bit on the cream cheese and Parm if you find it too rich.
I have made several recipes from your book and the website, and everything has been very good. But, OMG, this is the BEST!!!!! I used ground turkey because that is what I had on hand, so I upped the spice a little. This will be regular in my rotation!!!
I was skeptical about this recipe, but gave it a try and WE LOVED IT! Great flavor without being too heavy like the white chicken lasagna recipe we found on AllRecipes.
We used the no boil/oven ready noodles, which require a little more liquid so I also doubled the sauce and it turned out great!
We are dairy free and aside from using a soy based cream cheese is there any other alternative?
Hi there. You can find nut milk cream cheeses now at health food oriented groceries or you can make your own: http://www.thecleandish.com/homemade-nut-milk-cashew-cream-cheese-vegan/. ;)
What could you use instead of milk? Kefir or almond milk?
Hi Jenny. I’ve used almond milk in most of Lisa’s recipe without a problem.
Do you cook this before freezing? Or do you freeze it then bake it? (looking to take this to a friend who is having surgery)
Hi Caroline. You could do it either way. I typically cook before freezing. :)
Think I will make this for my sons birthday party (just family) coming up. What is something good to serve with it? Salad? Fruit?
Hi Shelby. Both! You could try one of these combos: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2014/08/06/make-perfect-salad/.
:)
I must be a goof, but I’m going to ask anyway. What size pan do you use? I didn’t scroll through all the comments so sorry if you already answered :-)
Hi there. A 9×13 pan works well. ~Amy
Wow! What a wonderful taste combination! I made one addition…seasoning and sautéed mushrooms added to the sauce. This was a HUGE hit with my husband, I’ll be making this again. Thank you so much !
I’ve just rediscovered your site after we went gluten-free for several months and found that our family is okay with wheat after all. I made this for dinner tonight and we loved it! Cream cheese is not available where I live (and way too expensive to import) so I subbed homemade ricotta (no egg added). I tasted the chicken mixture and it was AMAZING! I think it would make a yummy filling for a lunch wrap too. Thanks so much for posting such great recipes. The whole wheat biscuit recipe is a new staple in our home since last night–my 17 month old daughter loves them too!
I LOVE THIS RECIPE- DEFINITELY ONE OF MY FAVORITES FROM YOUR SITE. WHAT I AM WONDERING IS HOW I WOULD TWEAK THE RECIPE, OR IF IT WOULD BE POSSIBLE, TO USE THE ‘NO-BOIL/OVEN READY’ LASAGNA NOODLES. TARGET CARRIES SOME AMAZING WHOLE WHEAT NOODLES UNDER THEIR SIMPLY BALANCED BRAND AND I WOULD LOVE TO INCORPORATE THEM INTO THIS RECIPE. PLUS, IT WOULD SAVE SOME TIME :) LET ME KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANY RECOMMENDATIONS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP AND AWESOME HELP IN GETTING US ALL TO LEAD HEALTHIER LIVES!!
I used the no boil noodles and it worked fine, moisture is the issue since you have to cook it at 400 for 35-40 minutes. I just covered with foil until last 5 minutes and then lightly broiled. Although I did as someone else suggested and added a layer of mashed butternut, which was very good and helped the dish not to dry out.
I made this tonight and my whole family loved it, including my 4 and 2 year old. I did use ricotta and an egg instead of the cream cheese and breadcrumbs because I had some ricotta I needed to use. I also added a little mashed butternut squash that I had in the fridge into the chicken mixture. I will definitely make this again. Thanks for all of your great recipes!,
I made this for dinner last night. It was so delicious. My husband loved it too. I sent the recipe to a friend to try. My cookbook was shipped on Thursday. I can’t wait to get it!!
Made this tonight and my daughters (4 & 6) loved it. A really fabulous recipe and I love that it uses fresh spinach and not frozen as many white lasagnas do. I will definitely make this again!
My husband was very skeptical when I told him that I was making a new lasagna recipe. Especially when he heard about the spinach. But now he has asked me to make this “every week! ” I wish I had increased the sauce though.
Could you use the no bake noodles and increase the cooking time? Or are they not available in whole-wheat?
Hi Cheryl. We’ve not used the no bake noodles but I think they will work fine if you can find a whole wheat version. ~Amt
What size rectangular pan? I don’t think it said. Apologies if it did…
Hi Ellen. A 9×13 will work or anything similar. ~Amy
Thanks, I’m making it right now and can’t wait to see how it turns out!
I made this today and it was so good!!! Next time I think I’ll make a little more sauce because by the top layer I felt like I was stretched pretty thin. But so good! Two thumbs up!