The Discontinued Trader Joe's Frozen Pasta Dish We Desperately Want Back

One of the mistakes many folks make when cooking lasagna is not considering the needs of friends and family who don't eat meat. While a traditional lasagna is bursting with a meaty sauce thick with beef, pork, or some other animal protein, options for this beloved, layered pasta dish can be scant for vegetarians. That's why Trader Joe's frozen spinach lasagna lives on in our hearts, even though it's been years after the product was 86'd from store shelves. The list of discontinued TJ's products is lengthy and full of some real bangers (honey butter potato chips, our beloved!), but the spinach lasagna was a real loss in our books. Made of succulent strata of noodles, spinach, ricotta, and seasonings, all dressed with tomato sauce, this meal for one made a quick lunch or dinner when you wanted a belly-warming dish in a hurry without sacrificing quality. Alas, it was pulled from shelves in 2021.

The store's current selection of frozen meals suitable for vegetarians is slim as of this writing, being confined to a roasted vegetable pizza, kimbap, and Impossible chicken nuggets. While it's true that they all look delicious, they don't satiate our craving for warm, saucy pasta. The internet is replete with fond memories of this frozen lasagna, which leads us to believe that we're not alone in wishing Trader Joe's would conjure up a second helping.

"It's just about the most perfect thing for lunch," the Club Trader Joe's blog raved about the frozen spinach lasagna back in 2020, noting (ironically) that the meal had been a staple for over a decade and a half and was probably due for retirement. Freezer Meal Frenzy noted that the lasagna was particularly heavy on spinach, which wasn't a bad thing: "Thankfully, if you're a fan of spinach, you'll find a lot to like here. The spinach is cooked very well; it's not mushy or slimy at all. The ricotta cheese and other seasonings give it plenty of flavor, as does the tomato sauce."

Now that the meal has been discontinued, fans want it back. On Facebook, one poster dubbed it a #holidaymiracle when she unearthed one last lasagna: "I was cleaning out my freezer and found a spinach lasagna!! It's going to be a good day!" "I miss the individual Spinach Lasagna," another Facebook user sighed when the conversation turned to products gone, but not forgotten. 

Instagram got hype in 2022 when Trader Joe's introduced a Florentine lasagna, but reviews were tepid. "It was a soggy sack of sadness. Never had something so bad from TJ," one commenter claimed. It's clear that there's demand for a veggie lasagna at Trader Joe's, but it remains to be seen whether the grocer will give us what we want in the future. The official reasons why Trader Joe's discontinues products are often vague enough to be frustrating, but the company welcomes feedback on the matter via its website.