Rich Chicken Pesto Lasagna Recipe

I was cleaning and organizing the fridge and freezer on Friday. Good times at House Shaw! I realized I had the makings of lasagna, but I wanted to make it a little different using a different sauce. So, I ended up with this super delicious chicken pesto lasagna recipe.

This pasta turned out beautifully. The pesto was a pleasant surprise, but I loved how every bite was really enjoyable. Every layer was so sinfully good. No worries, you can use other options for the ingredients to make the recipe healthier.

Rich Chicken Pesto Lasagna Recipe

Gretel Shaw

This chicken pesto lasagna is a new way to enjoy your favourite pasta dish. The combination of flavours in this recipe is unexpectedly divine and I you should try it at home.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 2 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 2 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Servings 8

Calories 794 kcal

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

Sauce Ingredients

• ½ kilogram ground chicken (minced chicken)
• 25 ml olive oil
• 8 small mushrooms - sliced
• 200 ml red wine
• 500 ml Marinara sauce (tomatoes, garlic, herbs, and onions – pasta sauce in southern hemisphere for Italian seafood dish)
• 750 ml ketchup (tomato sauce Australia and UK)
• 414 ml passata or crushed tomatoes (tomato puree with seeds removed)
• 2 teaspoons basil
• 2 teaspoons oregano

Filling Ingredients

• 250 ml pesto sauce
• 330 ml ricotta cheese
•  
  150 grams jalapeno Havarti cheese - cut into cubes

Noodle Ingredients

• 1 package lasagna sheets

Topping Ingredients

• 200 grams mozzarella cheese - grated
• 100 grams parmesan cheese - grated

Instructions

 

• In a deep frying pan, heat the olive oil. Cook the ground chicken in the oil, and separate any big clumps of meat with your wooden spoon. The goal is evenly-sized crumbles of chicken. Add the sliced mushrooms when the chicken has been in the pan for about 5 minutes or so. Continue to fry the meat and mushrooms until they are thoroughly cooked.
• Deglaze the frying pan with the red wine.
• Add the pasta sauce with veggies (if using), the commercial tomato sauce, and the canned tomatoes. Stir well.
• Add the herbs and garlic. Stir well
• Allow simmering over low heat, uncovered, for 2 hours.
• While the sauce is simmering, prepare the cheese filling. Start by spooning the ricotta cheese into a mixing bowl.
• Add the pesto sauce, and mix well.
• Stir in the cubes of Havarti. Set aside.
• When the sauce has reduced (after about 2 hours), taste and correct the seasoning if necessary.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Start lasagna construction by ladling some sauce into the bottom of a large rectangular Pyrex baking dish. Then, spread it evenly over the bottom of the baking dish, so your noodles don’t stick to the pan.
• Add a layer of the uncooked “oven-ready” lasagna noodles.
• Add a layer of sauce.
• Add a layer of noodles.
• Dollop the ricotta cheese-pesto mixture over the noodles so that it is more or less evenly distributed across the noodle surface
• Add a layer of noodles.
• Add a layer of sauce.
• Add a layer of noodles.
• Add a thick layer of sauce.
• Sprinkle on the grated Mozza and parmesan.
• Cover the dish with tinfoil.
• Bake the pesto lasagna at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 minutes.
• After 40 minutes, remove the tinfoil and bake another ten minutes (this browns the cheese on top).
• Remove the cooked lasagna from oven and allow to rest for 10 to 15 minutes before you slice into it.

Nutrition

Calories: 794kcalCarbohydrates: 61gProtein: 42gFat: 41gSaturated Fat: 16gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 123mgSodium: 1720mgPotassium: 1246mgFiber: 6gSugar: 11gVitamin A: 2091IUVitamin C: 17mgCalcium: 596mgIron: 4mg

How did this recipe turn out for you?We’re eager to hear your thoughts!