Thanksgiving Stuffing Lasagna is exactly what it sounds like: all the flavors of Thanksgiving stuffing, layered into a rich, cheesy, creamy lasagna. We’re talking savory sausage (chicken, pork, or vegetarian all work!), lots of herbs, pops of tart cranberries, and plenty of creamy, melty cheese tucked between layers of pasta. It’s a little unexpected, very decadent, and a really fun way to do Thanksgiving if you’re not in the mood for the traditional turkey-and-sides situation.
There are a lot of ingredients and a few steps involved, but the payoff is BIG. You end up with a lot of food that feeds a lot of people and has pretty much everything you want from a Thanksgiving meal baked right into it. This is perfect for Friendsgiving, a potluck where you want to show up with something seriously impressive, or a smaller, more unorthodox Thanksgiving where you’d rather make one spectacular dish than juggle a million sides and a turkey that you have to roast for hours.
If you’re someone who loves Thanksgiving flavors but wants to do something a little different this year, this is your recipe. It’s cozy, a little unexpected, wildly satisfying, and absolutely worth the effort.
Table of contents
Ingredients you’ll need
- 1 pound oyster mushrooms, or a variety of mushrooms
- 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for drizzling
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 2 (4 oz total) shallots
- 1 medium (12 oz) fennel bulb
- 3 (4 oz total) celery stalks
- 2-3 sprigs sage, or 12-15 leaves
- 4 sprigs rosemary
- 2 cups (3 oz) fresh parsley
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 1/2 pounds mozzarella
- 4 ounces parmesan
- 16 ounces whole milk ricotta
- 12 ounces vegetarian or chicken fennel apple sausage, I love the Field Roast brand
- Freshly cracked black pepper
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
- 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar, or white wine vinegar
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 cups milk of choice
- 12 ounces lasagna noodles
Ingredient substitutions
This recipe is truly delicious as is, but it’s also pretty flexible. Here are just some substitution suggestions:
- Oyster mushrooms – for optimal crispiness, you can use maitake or shiitake, but cremini, baby bella, or any other combination of mushrooms will also work!
- Extra-virgin olive oil – swap for avocado oil, grapeseed oil, or really any oil you like.
- Shallot – you can use a red onion, yellow onion, white onion, or a little more fennel.
- Garlic cloves – swap for 1 teaspoon of garlic powder, or you can omit.
- Butter – can be swapped for vegan butter, olive oil, or any neutral cooking oil you prefer.
- Flour – can be swapped for 1:1 gluten-free flour
- Lasagna noodles – feel free to use the ‘oven-ready’ lasagna noodles so you don’t have to boil them before assembling. You can also use gluten-free lasagna noodles if needed.
Prepping all of elements of this Thanksgiving lasagna
Aside from the obvious cheese, the other elements of this lasagna include: a mushroom bechamel, a vegetable mixture, and of course, noodles. Here’s how to prep all of those before we’re ready to assemble and bake:
Step 1 – Roast your mushrooms
Tear in the mushrooms into a 9×13-inch baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt. Roast for 30-40 minutes, or until the mushrooms are incredibly crisp.
Step 2 – Prepare your mise
While the mushrooms are roasting, slice the shallots, fennel bulb, and celery stalks. Finely chop up the sage, rosemary, and parsley. Grate four garlic cloves. Tear the mozzarella into a large bowl. Grate in the parmesan and portion out 16 ounces of ricotta. Roughly chop up the sausage.
Step 3 – Sauté the vegetable mixture
Place a large pan over medium heat. Add olive oil, sliced shallots, fennel, celery, sage and rosemary. Season with salt and black pepper and cook for 10-13 minutes, or until incredibly soft and halved in size. Halfway through cooking, add the garlic and half of the parsley. Set the other half of the parsley aside for topping.
Turn the heat off of the vegetables and stir in 1/4 cup of dried cranberries and 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar. Transfer the vegetables out of the pan.
Step 4 – Make the mushroom bechamel
Place the pan back over medium heat and add butter and flour. Mix into a paste and toast, stirring and mixing constantly, until the paste goes from a light golden to a deeper brown. It will be clumpy, but will loosen into a smoother paste as it darkens, kind of like peanut butter. This will take 5-6 minutes, so be patient!
Reduce the heat to low, then in 1/2 cup increments, mix in 2 1/2 cups of milk, stirring in each addition until it’s smooth. Season with salt and black pepper, then stir in the roasted mushrooms. Set this aside. It will thicken as it sits, which it totally fine!
Step 5 – Cook the lasagna noodles
Boil the lasagna noodles in batches for 4-5 minutes, or until soft but still al dente. Lay them on a half sheet pan, drizzling with olive oil as needed to prevent sticking.
Add 1 cup of the pasta water to the mushroom cream sauce to help loosen it up.
How to layer & bake this lasagna
Now that we have all the elements of this lasagna prepped and ready to go, it’s time to assemble!
In a 9 by 13-inch baking dish, layer as so:
- 1 thin layer of olive oil
- 1 layer of noodles
- Half of the mushroom béchamel
- Half of the vegetable mixture
- Half of the sausage
- Half of the ricotta
- One third of the mozzarella
- 1 layer of noodles
- The remaining half of the bechamel
- The remaining half of the vegetables mixture
- The remaining half of the sausage
- The remaining half of the ricotta
- The second third of the mozzarella
- 1 layer of noodles
- Cover with the remaining mozzarella and parsley
Bake at 375°F convection for 40-45 minutes, or until the lasagna is bubbling and browned.
Can I prep this ahead of time?
Absolutely! It’s possible to make this lasagna ahead of time in two ways: 1) Prep the lasagna all the way up to when it’s supposed to go in the oven, but instead of baking it, cover and refrigerate until you’d like to bake and serve.
Or, 2) you can bake the lasagna, cover it, and put it in the fridge. This is the best option, especially if you’re planning to make it more than 3 days in advance. Reheat it in a 350°F degree oven for 30 minutes, or until warmed through right before you’re ready to eat.
Storage and reheating instructions
Refrigerator: You can either store the entire baking dish or cut it into individual portions. Cover or wrap well and it will stay fresh in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Freezer: I recommend cutting the lasagna into individuals portion first. Then wrap it in plastic wrap or store it in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Reheat: Whether reheating from the fridge or frozen, reheat it in a 350°F degree oven for 30 minutes, or until warmed through. Or, if you’re in a pinch, the microwave will do just fine!
Watch the recipe here
The video may not fully represent the recipe. For best results, follow the instructions as written.
Looking for more Thanksgiving recipes?
Four Cheese Mac n’ Cheese with Garlic Sage Breadcrumbs – 2023 Version
Vegetarian Cornbread and Cranberry Stuffing
Squash and Quinoa Salad with Cranberry Dressing
And that’s it for this Thanksgiving Lasagna!
If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
You can also shop this video if you’re looking for the exact pieces I use – I’ve linked everything on my ShopMy! *some links may contain affiliate commissions
And of course, feel free to leave any questions, comments, or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound oyster mushrooms, or a variety of mushrooms
- 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for drizzling
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 2 (4 oz total) shallots
- 1 medium (12 oz) fennel bulb
- 3 (4 oz total) celery stalks
- 2-3 sprigs sage, or 12-15 leaves
- 4 sprigs rosemary
- 2 cups (3 oz) fresh parsley
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 1/2 pounds mozzarella
- 4 ounces parmesan
- 16 ounces whole milk ricotta
- 12 ounces vegetarian or chicken fennel apple sausage, I love the Field Roast brand
- Freshly cracked black pepper
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
- 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar, or white wine vinegar
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 cups milk of choice
- 12 ounces lasagna noodles
Instructions
- Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375°F convection, 400°F standard.
- Roast the mushrooms: Tear the mushrooms into a 9×13-inch baking dish. Drizzle with 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and season with 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Roast for 30-40 minutes, or until the mushrooms are darkened and crisp.
- During this time, prepare your mise: Thinly slice two shallots, one fennel bulb, and three celery stalks. Finely chop up 15 leaves of sage, 4 sprigs of rosemary and 3 ounces of parsley. Grate four garlic cloves. Tear up 1 1/2 pounds of mozzarella into a large bowl. Grate in 4 ounces of parmesan. Portion out 16 ounces of ricotta. Roughly chop up 12 ounces of sausage. Set everything aside.
- Prepare the vegetable mixture: Place a large pan over medium heat. Add the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil. Add the sliced shallots, fennel, celery, sage, and rosemary. Season with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and black pepper. Cook for 10-13 minutes, or until incredibly soft and halved in size. Halfway through cooking, add the garlic and half of the parsley. Set the other half of the parsley aside for topping.
- Turn the heat off of the vegetables and stir in 1/4 cup of dried cranberries and 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar. Transfer the vegetables out of the pan.
- Prepare the mushroom béchamel: Place the pan back over medium heat. Add 4 tablespoons of butter to the pan and 1/2 cup of flour. Mix into a paste and toast, stirring and mixing constantly, until the paste goes from a light golden to a deeper brown. It will be clumpy, but will loosen into a smoother paste as it darkens, kind of like peanut butter. This will take 5-6 minutes so be patient!
- Reduce the heat to low, then in 1/2 cup increments, mix in 2 1/2 cups of milk, stirring in each addition until it’s smooth. Season with salt and black pepper, then stir in the roasted mushrooms. Set this aside. It will thicken as it sits, which it totally fine!
- Cook the noodles: Boil the lasagna noodles in batches for 4-5 minutes, or until soft but still al dente. Lay them on a half sheet pan, drizzling with olive oil as needed to prevent sticking.
- Add 1 cup of pasta water to the mushroom sauce to help loosen it up.
- Now it’s time to assemble! In a 9 by 13-inch baking dish, layer as so: – 1 thin layer of olive oil – 1 layer of noodles– Half of the mushroom béchamel– Half of the vegetable mixture– Half of the sausage– Half of the ricotta– One third of the mozzarella– 1 layer of noodles– The remaining half of the bechamel– The remaining half of the vegetable mixture– The remaining half of the sausage– The remaining half of the ricotta– The second third of the mozzarella– 1 layer of noodles– Cover with the remaining mozzarella and parsley
- Now you can either store this in the fridge, covered for 12-24 hours, then bake. Or, bake at 375°F convection for 40-45 minutes or until the lasagna is bubbling and browned.
- Serve warm! Accept the compliments!
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