4 Cheese Sage Pesto Florentine Lasagna.

This 4 Cheese Sage Pesto Florentine Lasagna is the perfect baked pasta for cozy November and December nights at home. Beautiful layers of creamy sage and garlic butter béchamel sauce, spinach, pesto, and lasagna noodles, all come together in this vegetable-focused lasagna. It’s vibrant, creamy, cheesy, and so delicious! Top the lasagna with herbs before baking for a warming dinner that’s mouth-wateringly delicious. This is a great make-ahead lasagna for Friendsgiving, Thanksgiving, and all the upcoming holiday dinner parties.

The Thanksgiving recipes continue on today! After sharing our 2020 Thanksgiving menu on Monday, I wanted to be sure to share all the new recipes with you guys as soon as possible. I know so many of us are in the midst of planning our holiday menus!

I shared my mini cranberry brie bites yesterday, and today it’s the vegetarian main course of our Thanksgiving menu. The extra cheesy, herby lasagna…that rivals the turkey itself. It just depends on the kinds of food you love most! Personally, if given the option between this lasagna and the Thanksgiving turkey, I’d have to go for the lasagna. But that’s just me. I’m much more of a cheesy carb person versus a meaty person. My brothers on the other hand?

The complete opposite.

With every Thanksgiving dinner, I think it’s always important to include at least one vegetarian main course. With so many people choosing to eat vegetarian these days, I think it’s really nice to have a main on the table that will satisfy those guests. Yes, I know the brussels sprouts and salad are delicious. But they aren’t quite the main course we’re looking for on Thanksgiving Day.

I never want anyone to feel left out, especially on such a fun holiday like Thanksgiving, so I always do at least one main that’s meat-free. And you know what? It’s almost always the first dish to fully disappear from the table.

The background.

When thinking about my menu for this year, I kept in mind that I wanted to keep things simple and on the classic side. I knew I wanted to include a version of my Aunt Katie’s white lasagna. When I was younger, my aunt would make her cheesy spinach lasagna for holiday parties. I remember loving it so much. When she passed, I kept her lasagna alive and have been making it for our holiday dinners every year since.

Some years I follow her recipe to a T. Other years I’ll switch it up slightly by adding new herbs or swapping cheeses.

Which is what I did this year. I left out the chicken, added lots of fresh sage and a pinch of rosemary, and doubled up on the cheese. It’s her base recipe, just with a few little twists and tweaks…that I know she would fully approve of!

4 Cheese Sage Pesto Florentine Lasagna – the details…

This lasagna is pretty straightforward and easy. My aunt didn’t like recipes that require a lot of work…and we all love her for that!

Start with the butter. She didn’t skimp on it, so we’re not going to either. Let the butter cook and slowly brown with plenty of garlic and sage. As the butter cooks, the garlic caramelizes and the sage becomes crispy and very fragrant. Once you’ve got the butter a light golden brown color, add a little flour to the mix. The flour will help thicken our sauce.

Next, add milk and a mix of fontina and parmesan cheese. Simmer until the sauce is creamy and all that cheese has melted. This is your béchamel sauce.

Once you’ve got the sauce, the rest comes together easily.

Mix ricotta with provolone and a spoonful of basil pesto, then grab the noodles and assemble.

In full disclosure, I did make homemade pasta for this. You can find my dough recipe here. However, making homemade pasta is not necessary at all, so please don’t feel like you need to follow my lead. When I made this, I had run out of lasagna noodles and decided that instead of going out in the snow, I’d just make my own pasta since it’s really pretty easy to do.

I knew it would make for an even better lasagna, so I just went for it. I will say that the fresh pasta does give you that authentic Italian style lasagna. So maybe if you have the time, give it a try, it is delicious.

If not, no big deal at all!

 

And moving along…

Once you have the béchamel sauce, the ricotta cheese mixture, and the noodles altogether, all that’s left to do is assemble. Simply layer everything together with easy, no-boil lasagna noodles (or that fresh pasta).

Bake and then begin to enjoy all the wonderful smells coming from the oven.

I really can’t begin to describe just how delicious this lasagna is. Something about these flavors all layered together and baked is just beyond GOOD. The caramelized garlic and sage add so much depth of flavor. And the sauce is incredibly rich and creamy and brightens up with the addition of spinach. When everything is put together you get a rich, creamy, and super cheesy pasta.

Every last bite is delicious.

One of my biggest tips for holiday entertaining, whether it’s Thanksgiving or Christmas, is to use recipes that can be prepped ahead of time. I avoid planning too many recipes that require you to hover over the stove all night long. It’s best to work with recipes you can assemble in advance, like this lasagna!

When guests arrive, I can be more present and actually enjoy the evening (or afternoon). Amazing food is important, but that doesn’t mean we have to be huddled in the kitchen all day preparing it!

So with that, I’ll leave you with my favorite lasagna of the year. It’s going to be great on Thanksgiving, but will be equally special for nights ahead. Whether that’s a snowy Sunday dinner or a Tuesday night with friends. The holidays are all about family, friends, and delicious food.

Oh, and if you’re looking for a great salad to go along with this hearty pasta, I highly recommend this. It’s always a crowd favorite.

Looking for other vegetable focused holiday dinners? Here are my favorites: 

Crispy Prosciutto Cheesy White Lasagna

Stuffed Spaghetti Squash 4 Cheese Pesto Lasagna

Creamy French Onion and Mushroom Soup

Lastly, if you make this 4 Cheese Sage Pesto Florentine Lasagna, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!