Now get ready for this white lasagna to join the ranks of your other Italian favorites: Bolognese, Chicken Parmesan, Manicotti, Sausage Rigatoni, Italian Meatballs, Fettuccine Alfredo, Macaroni and Cheese, Baked Penne, Pasta Al Forno, Italian Pasta Salad etc.. Now just try and pick a favorite!
Lasagna Noodles Shredded Chicken Alfredo Sauce Spinach Artichokes Parmesan Cheese Mozzarella Cheese Ricotta Cheese Italian Seasonings
Many White Chicken Lasagna recipes have similar ingredients but the magic of this lasagna recipe comes down to the quality of ingredients, seasonings and ratio of ingredients which I’ve discussed in greater detail below. The beauty of the ingredients is that they are all pantry friendly which means you can make it whenever the cravings strike!
WHAT ARE THE BEST NOODLES FOR CHICKEN LASAGNA?
You have two choices when it comes to lasagna noodles: no-boil lasagna noodles or classic lasagna noodles. My clear choice for this Chicken Lasagna recipe is classic lasagna noodles, here’s why: No Boil Noodles. Just Say No to No Boil Noodles. No boil lasagna noodles are definitely alluring without the extra step of boiling noodles and dealing with clumping, tearing boiled noodles. No boil lasagna, noodles, however, are too thin, in my opinion, against the thick, robust sauce and layers of luscious cheese filling. No boil noodles also tend to bake up chewy instead of tender and you run the unpalatable risk of crunchy, noodles if they are not adequately submerged in the sauce. Classic Noodles. What if I told you, you can use classic noodles without boiling them? Without the slipping, sticking and tearing? Well, you CAN! We soak our classic noodles in hot water while the sauce is simmering. They emerge softened and super easy to work with without the risk of tearing. The softened noodles cook completely in the lasagna for the perfect texture every single time.
WHAT TYPE OF CHICKEN SHOULD I USE for WHITE LASAGNA?
I have tried shredded rotisserie chicken, homemade shredded chicken (from chicken breasts) and diced chicken in this Chicken Lasagna recipe – my clear favorite is shredded rotisserie chicken. You can definitely still make with your own shredded chicken – instructions to follow.
Rotisserie Chicken: is a mixture of light and dark meat so it’s extra juicy and flavorful. It is also beautifully tender, delicately seasoned and delicious plain, so it is perfect to use in white lasagna. I like to purchase rotisserie chicken from Costco, portion it into recipe serving sizes and freeze in plastic bags. You can use this frozen chicken in a number of recipes including Million Dollar Chicken Alfredo Bake, Chicken Spaghetti, Chicken Divan, Chicken Enchiladas and Shredded Chicken Tacos. Chicken Breasts or Thighs: You can make your own shredded chicken with either chicken breasts or chicken thighs so you can always make this white lasagna with whatever chicken you have on hand. Chicken thighs will give you juicer, more flavorful shredded chicken, but chicken breasts will work as well. I’ve included instructions below on how to make our own shredded chicken below.
Parmesan cheese: is a key ingredient to any Alfredo sauce. For best results use ONLY freshly grated Parmesan cheese. You don’t want to use the powdered or pre-shredded cheese. Freshly grated Parmesan cheese is much more flavorful and melts much better. butter: use unsalted butter so we can control the level of salt. You may also substitute half of the butter with olive oil for a lighter sauce. garlic cloves: is essential to infuse the Chicken Alfredo Lasagna with garlicky goodness – use more or less depending on your garlic love. all-purpose flour: thickens the sauce beautifully. You may substitute with gluten free flour. low sodium chicken broth: is more flavorful than just milk or heavy cream. You can also substitute vegetable broth. Make sure you use low sodium broth so your Alfredo sauce isn’t too salty. half and half: is sold next to the heavy cream and milk and is equal parts milk and cream. I often don’t have half and half on hand but I usually stock heavy cream, so I will make my own half and half. To make your own half and half for this white lasagna, you would need 1 ½ cup milk and 1 ½ cups heavy cream. seasonings: in addition to garlic, this Alfredo sauce is seasoned with chicken bouillon, red pepper flakes, dried basil, dried parsley, dried thyme, onion powder, salt and pepper. You can add more or less of any of the seasonings to suite your tastes. If you usually shy away from red pepper flake, I can assure you they won’t make your lasagna spicy because of the quantity of other ingredients – just flavorful.
MOZZARELLA
White lasagna – or any lasagna recipe – always needs mozzarella cheese. Mozzarella is creamy, buttery and melts beautifully. It’s milky richness cuts through the tangy tomato sauce. I prefer shredded mozzarella cheese over fresh mozzarella balls because I find them too watery for lasagna. I also prefer shredded mozzarella cheese over sliced mozzarella because it’s so much easier to evenly distribute. If you want to use mozzarella slices, then I suggest asking your deli counter to very thinly slice the mozzarella.
RICOTTA
There is a debate between using ricotta and cottage cheese in lasagna filling. Some turn to cottage cheese because they don’t like the grainy texture of ricotta. Well, I’ve solved that dilemma. I did a side by side test of:
lasagna with ricotta lasagna with ricotta mixed with sour cream lasagna with cottage cheese lasagna with cottage cheese mixed with sour cream
The lasagna with ricotta mixed with sour cream was the clear winner with lasagna with cottage cheese mixed with sour cream as the second choice. I was AMAZED by the ricotta mixed with sour cream. It still tasted like ricotta filling but was no longer grainy but smooth – seriously lasagna changing – I will never go back! That being said, I have heard that the ricotta we buy in our American grocery stores tastes nothing like ricotta you purchase at an Italian market. If you have the chance to purchase either brands Sierra or Polly-O ricotta cheese at a specialty market, then you might not need the sour cream trick – but I think I’d still do it because – tangy, silky sour cream!
PARMESAN
Lastly, you will need freshly grated Parmesan cheese to infuse the Chicken Lasagna with its alluring salty, nutty flavor. Parmesan is used both in the ricotta mixture as well as in the Alfredo sauce. It is a lot of Parmesan to grate, so I suggest using the grater attachment on your food processor if you have one. You don’t want to use the powdered or pre-shredded cheese. Freshly grated Parmesan cheese tastes far superior and melts much better.
ricotta cheese: please use whole milk ricotta -you can taste the difference! It melts far better than skim ricotta for a much creamier texture. sour cream: full fat please – again it melts much better. Parmesan cheese: adds nutty, salty goodnesss. Use freshly grated Parmesan for its superior melting ability and not powdered or pre-shredded cheese. basil: ¼ cup fresh basil or 1 tablespoon dried basil will do the trick – but fresh is always best! seasonings: nutmeg is a secret authentic ingredient to ricotta lasagna filling. It is rounded out by salt and pepper. eggs: act as a binding agent and prevents the filling from being runny; but don’t worry, you can’t taste the egg, just the luxurious texture. spinach: I use a package of thawed frozen for ease but you can also make your own wilted spinach be steaming it – be warned it takes a lot of spinach to equal the frozen equivalent. artichoke hearts: make sure you purchase artichoke hearts in water as opposed to marinated. Rinse and drain the artichokes well before chopping. After chopping, pat dry again. Artichoke hearts are located either in the canned vegetable aisle or pickles/sandwich condiments at your grocery store.
Here’s How to Make Chicken Lasagna step by step (full recipe in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post):
step 1 – Soak Lasagna Noodles
Add the classic lasagna noodles to a long dish, such as a 9×13 pan or bread pan and cover in hot water. There is no need to boil the water, hot tap water will do just fine. Take care the noodles are completely submerged in water. Let them soak while you prep the lasagna – at least 30 minutes.
step 2 – Make ricotta cheese mixture
While the lasagna noodles are soaking, mix together ricotta cheese, sour cream, spinach, artichokes, fresh basil, nutmeg, eggs and Parmesan cheese.
step 3 – Make Alfredo Sauce
Cook flour and garlic in butter, stir in half and half, chicken broth, seasonings and simmer until thickened. Stir in Parmesan until melted. Finally, stir in shredded chicken until evenly combined.
step 4 – How to layer White Chicken Lasagna
These layers create a perfectly balanced Chicken Alfredo Lasagna with the least amount of effort. By combining the chicken with the sauce and the spinach and artichokes with the ricotta filling, we minimize the layering steps but still get to enjoy the elements in the many layers.
Spread a thin layer of chicken Alfredo sauce on the bottom of a lightly greased 9×13 pan.
Make a layer of lasagna noodles by placing 4 noodles lengthwise and part of a 5th noodle on top to cover. Take care you pat your noodles dry after soaking before layering.
Spread an even layer of the ricotta cheese mixture (⅓ of the mixture).
Top with 1 cup mozzarella cheese.
Repeat those layers (chicken Alfredo sauce, noodles, ricotta, mozzarella) 2 more times for a total of 3 complete layers.
To finish, top with remaining sauce and remaining mozzarella.
step 5 – How to bake this Chicken Lasagna Recipe
Cover the baking pan with aluminum foil. If you leave your white lasagna uncovered in the oven, it will become dry. Bake lasagna at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 30 minutes or until cheese is completely melted and lasagna is hot and bubbly. Turn the oven to broil (550 degree F) without moving the lasagna. Broil until the top is golden in spots, about 3 minutes, watching closely so it doesn’t burn. Let the Chicken Lasagna rest for at least 15 minutes before slicing. This will allow the lasagna to set and to cool slightly in order to create cleaner slices.
Thin sauce if needed. Alfredo sauce can become too thick if its simmered at too high of heat or for too long or if it’s allowed to sit; but don’t worry, it’s SO easy to fix! Simply stir in a little milk or chicken broth until it thins to desired consistency. Squeeze spinach dry. We want VERY DRY spinach so the Chicken Lasagna doesn’t become watery. I recommend adding defrosted spinach to a fine mesh sieve over the sink then press down on it with the bottom of a measuring cup until no liquid is released. Pat artichokes dry. Same goes for the artichokes – we want VERY DRY artichokes or they can make the ricotta filling watery. Pat artichokes down with paper towels before you chop them. After you chop them, gather them in a clean kitchen towel and pat dry again. Dry lasagna noodles. Take care you pat your noodles dry after soaking them before layering. I do this by laying each layer of noodles (so 5 noodles at a time) on a clean kitchen towel, then folding the towel over the noodles and patting them dry. Don’t worry about thin layers. They chicken Alfredo sauce layer will seem thin, but don’t worry about it – just spread the best you can and it will spread and melt into cohesive creaminess as it bakes.
Swap protein. I know this is CHICKEN Lasagna, but that doesn’t mean you can’t mix it up! You can swap the chicken for ground turkey, Italian sausage or even lump crab meat. Add veggies. You can sprinkle in layers of veggies such as steamed broccoli, petite peas, bell peppers, zucchini, asparagus, mushrooms, etc. You will want to steam, roast or boil the veggies before adding to the pasta. Add sun-dried tomatoes. Sun-dried tomatoes are a delicious addition with the artichokes and spinach. Take care to rinse and pat them very dry before chopping. Reduce the spinach to 12 oz. if adding sun-dried tomatoes. Make casserole gluten-free. To make this Lasagna recipe gluten free, use your favorite gluten free lasagna noodles and gluten free flour.
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Can I freeze Chicken Alfredo Lasagna?
Yes! Many recipes with cheese don’t freeze well, but this White Lasagna is an exception. You can freeze the lasagna baked or unbaked. Freezing homemade lasagna is a great way to enjoy a bake-and-eat dinner any night of the week without any prep! For best results, I recommend freezing unbaked lasagna, but both methods will work.
Looking for more Italian recipes?
Shrimp Fettuccine Loaded Zuppa Toscana Italian Vegetable Soup Caprese Chicken Pasta Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta One Skillet Cheesy Meaty Penne Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup Mushroom Orzo
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