In the many years since I was diagnosed with celiac disease, packaged dry gluten free pasta has come a long way, but still, nothing will ever beat fresh homemade gluten free lasagna noodles. (is it lasagna or lasagne? turns out, it depends on your continent!)
Now before you think “There’s no way I can make homemade gluten free lasagna noodles,” let me assure you that you can. This recipe is seriously easy, totally delicious and in no way, shape or form, fussy. And remember, the noodles will be covered by all those layers of cheesy, saucy deliciousness, so they don’t even have to be pretty!
With this recipe, you don’t need a pasta roller or fancy attachment to a stand mixer, but feel free to use one if you have it. The directions I give are for a traditional rolling pin and mat, so really anyone can do it with my award-winning gfJules Flour, since it adds stretch to gluten free doughs where other flours can’t.
(Watch my how-to video to see just how pliable and easy to manage this dough is! You’ll see how forgiving the dough and recipe are when you see me make it and even mess up in the process – it doesn’t matter! The dough is so easy, it’s actually hard to get this recipe wrong!)
Just like regular wheat-based lasagna noodles, these babies are light and thin and really do melt in your mouth – no rubbery gluten free noodles here! And you know what that means: everyone eats together!
It’s the perfect recipe for these cold winter days when all you want is a hot plate of comfort food to warm you from the inside; even better that you’ll probably have enough leftovers for tomorrow’s dinner, too! (Speaking of homemade gluten free pasta, don’t miss out on my easy gluten free ravioli, gluten free pierogi, gluten free gnocchi and gluten free spaetzle recipes!)
I’ve made this homemade lasagna recipe not only gluten free, but also dairy free and vegetarian. Feel free to add meat or regular dairy cheese if you prefer, but this way, the meal is nutritious and meets most peoples’ dietary needs deliciously.
I’ve partnered with Hilary’s Eat Well Veggie Burgers and Veggie Bites* to bring you this recipe because I’ve used their products every time I’ve made homemade gluten free lasagna. When chopped and added to my homemade gluten free pasta sauce recipe, their veggie burgers create the texture of traditional meat-based sauce.
I can also vary the flavors in the sauce by the choosing a different variety of veggie burgers (from Adzuki Bean to Spicy Thai and all kinds of milder flavors in between, they’re all delish!). Hilary’s products are also all vegan, certified gluten free and free of other allergens like soy, nuts, dairy and eggs. Made with whole gluten free grains, leafy greens and herbs, they’re good for you, too!
The way I see it, this dish is a win all around: taste, texture, appearance, aroma and nutrition. So bring on the comfort food and take the chill out of those cold winter nights!
Buon Appetito!
Homemade Fresh Gluten Free Lasagna Noodles and Lasagna
Homemade gluten free and dairy free lasagna is one of the best comfort foods around. And now you can make it from scratch: start to finish, even the gluten free noodles!
Ingredients
Homemade Fresh Gluten Free Lasagna Noodles
- 2 ¼ cups (304 grams) gfJules Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
- ¾ tsp. salt
- 4 eggs, room temperature (or egg substitute)
- 1 Tbs. olive oil
- 2 Tbs. warm water
Dairy-Free Ricotta Mixture
- 24 ounces ricotta cheese (I used Kite Hill Almond Milk based vegan ricotta) or silken tofu
- 2 eggs (or egg substitute of choice)
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese (I used Good Planet Foods vegan cheese)
- 1 cup parmesan cheese (I used Good Planet Foods vegan cheese)
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley or 1 Tbs. fresh chopped parsley
- ¼ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. pepper
Instructions
Measure and add gfJules™ All Purpose Gluten Free Flour to a large bowl and whisk in salt. Form a shallow well in the flour. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs to mix. Add the oil and water to the eggs to incorporate.
Slowly stir the liquids into the flour mixture and mix with pastry blender or fork until it all comes together into a smooth ball or disc; the dough should be sticky but not wet. Wrap in clear plastic wrap and allow to rest while you prepare the easy homemade pasta sauce and dairy-free ricotta mixture.
To make the ricotta mixture, whisk together ricotta and eggs in a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Set aside, covered and refrigerated if not preparing lasagna right away.
After allowing the dough to sit for at least 20 minutes, bring a large pot of water to boil with a teaspoon of salt. Place a large bowl of ice water near the stovetop, and line two or three baking sheets with parchment or wax paper.
Remove a small chunk of the pasta dough and leave the rest wrapped; each portion of dough should equal one long lasagna noodle, so imagine pulling off only around 1/20th of the dough each time.
Prepare a clean counter or pastry mat by dusting generously with gfJules™ All Purpose Gluten Free Flour. Roll each dough portion into a long ribbon so thin you can almost see through it. Using a bench scraper, offset spatula or flat butter knife, go underneath the dough to be sure none of it is sticking. Even the edges with a butter knife or fluted pasta cutter wheel to ruffle the edges like traditional lasagna noodles.
Lift the noodle, then fold it on itself like a ribbon to set it aside until you have at least two more ribbons cut. Each noodle should be no longer than the length of the pan you are using, usually around 10-12 inches long. Gather up any scrap dough and squeeze it together, covering to keep it moist; reuse this dough at the end if you need additional noodles.
Once you have three long ribbons cut, add separately to boiling water, trying not to allow the noodles to touch each other or themselves very much at first; once the entire noodle is wet, it shouldn’t stick to other portions of dough, but separate as much as you can while boiling.
The noodles should be in the boiling water for approximately 90 seconds -- no longer. Using a large wire skimmer or flat slotted spatula, gently remove each noodle from the boiling water and submerge in the ice water to stop them from cooking further. Repeat with each noodle then remove each noodle to drain on the parchment-lined sheets. You may lay parchment on top of one layer of noodles and repeat, if you run out of room on other sheets.
Once all the noodles are boiled, they may be used right away, dried, or stored in the refrigerator for 24 hours once they are layered and wrapped tightly with plastic wrap so they don’t dry out.
To assemble the lasagna, preheat oven to 350° F.
Oil the bottom and sides of a large, deep casserole dish, at least 9x13 inches in size.
Spread enough pasta sauce to cover the bottom of the dish. Top with one layer of fresh gluten free lasagna noodles. Spread enough ricotta mixture to cover the noodle layer entirely. Repeat the layers of sauce, noodles, ricotta until all ingredients are used.
As pictured above the recipe card, three - four layers of sauce+noodles+ricotta are made. The top and bottom layers should be pasta sauce. Sprinkle with additional parmesan or mozzarella cheese, if desired.
Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Then remove foil and bake an additional 10 minutes.
Serves 8.
Gluten free Lasagna Noodles came out delicious. Texture and taste were perfect. I made lasagna roll ups.
Gluten free lasagna roll ups sound fantastic! They look great, too! thanks so much for sharing your experience with this recipe and for your great pics!!!
~jules
Hello, I am new to the GF world, and so excited to have you in it. Can i make and assemble this in the am, refrigerate and bake for dinner the same day? thanks, Karen
Hi Karen, WELCOME!! And yes you can do that! Just make sure your pasta sauce isn’t super watery since you’re refrigerating for awhile. ENJOY!!
~jules
Hi,
Quick question, why add salt?
Can this be made without salt, or is that a key component?
We are low sodium as well as gluten free in my house because of lupus.
Hi Mia, you can absolutely reduce the salt here, as it’s just for flavor. Enjoy the recipe!
~jules
Omg, so good. I used the pasta for fettuccine and used a pasta roller so I added an egg per the notes. My dough was a little sticky so next time I will add the egg and water separately. But this was much better than store bought pasta. My husband (who is the gf intolerant one here) thinks I am insane because he will eat the store bought gf pasta but I am pickier. And I do this because I love him 😍 and because life is too short to eat subpar food 😂. I topped the fettuccine with a vodka sauce (sorry, my picture isn’t the best but trust me when I say it was SO GOOD).
Thank you for the recipes and the BEST flour blend out there.
I love this story, Kathy — I’m glad you’re so picky and won’t settle for sub-par pasta, either!!! So good to know that this homemade gluten free noodles recipe works well for fettuccine as well as for lasagna! Thanks for leaving your notes on the eggs — so helpful! I’m thrilled that you and your hubby have great pasta to enjoy together, thanks to you ( happy to have any part in that!!! )
Happy baking!!
~jules