VEGAN LASAGNA

A vegan lasagna with 3 layers of broccoli and mushrooms smothered in a delicious cheesy sauce. Perfect for lunch, dinner or when having friends over. Comfort food at its best. This dish is rich in all the vitamins and in minerals such as iron, copper, manganese, phosphorus, zinc and selenium.

And finally…a vegan lasagna recipe! A week ago I realized that my blog is missing some “must have” recipes, lasagna being one of them. So I went back to the kitchen and decided to experiment with this recipe. I thought it shouldn´t be that difficult, but my first try was a little bit disappointing. Even though it tasted pretty good, the texture and consistency were kind of a disaster. I added way too much tomato sauce, the vegetables lost a lot of water during the baking process and I assembled only three layers of noodles with two thick layers of filling…wrong. I ended up with a watery mush…that actually didn’t taste bad at all 🤔. However, I definitely had to retry and improve it.

So I changed a few things here and there, gave it another try and…yes! PERRRFECT. This time I used less tomato sauce, I added an extra layer of lasagna noodles, I cooked the vegetables for a longer time (to reduce the water content) and then I chopped them to even smaller pieces, using the food processor (pictured above 👆🏻). This lasagna did not only keep its consistency and shape when being served, it also tasted even better than the first one. Lasagna recipe: check ✅.

This graphic above shows the exact order of the different layers. I know, seems like a lot, but it actually takes like 5 minutes to build the lasagna.

I used white lasagna noodles, because I couldn’t find a whole wheat version. But if you do, go ahead and use those. Whole is always better. The most important thing is to use no-boil lasagna noodles. Otherwise, you will have to cook them before using them, which is kind of annoying.

And there you have it. A super tasty, filling and comforting vegan lasagna. Enjoy 🤞🏻

If you are looking for more pasta recipes, check out this Hemp Seeds Pesto Sauce, which pairs perfectly with any pasta of your choice. If you make this recipe and share it on Instagram, don´t forget to tag me @_brightbird and hashtag it #thebrightbird. I’d love to see your pictures!

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VEGAN LASAGNA

Prep 30 mins

Cook 30 mins

Total 60 mins

Author Sonia Raga

Yield 4 servings

This vegan lasagna with layers of lasagna noodles, mushrooms, broccoli and a super creamy and cheesy vegan sauce is the perfect meal when you are craving comfort food but still, want to keep it healthy.

Ingredients

For the lasagna

• 5 cups chopped broccoli (400g)
• 5 cups washed and chopped mushrooms (350g)
• 1 heaping cup (100g) chopped leek
• No-boil lasagna noodles (I used 3 noddles on each layer and a total of 12, but this will depend on how big or small you lasagna noodles are).
• 3/4 cup (180ml)  tomato sauce
• Salt and onion powder

For the cheesy sauce

• 3 small potatoes, peeled and chopped  (185g once peeled)
• 1/2 cup (120ml) of the cooking water (from cooking the potatoes).
• 1/2 cup (70g) cashews
• 4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1/2 cup (120ml) soy milk (use almond milk for a soy-free version).
• 2 tablespoons mustard
• 1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 teaspoons onion powder
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons salt (I recommend using kala namak)
• 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika

Notes:

• You will also need a 25x18x6 cm baking dish.

Instructions

1. Add the chopped mushrooms and broccoli to a pan and sautée, adding a bit of water if necessary, until the mushrooms have reduced in size and the broccoli is tender.
2. Transfer the vegetable mixture to a food processor and add a pinch of salt and onion powder. Then pulse a couple of time (check the pictures in this post). We don´t want mashed broccoli and mushrooms! (Since my food processor is not very big, I divided the mixture and made 3 batches, in order to avoid the bottom of the mixture to became overly blended).
3. To prepare the cheesy sauce, start by boiling the potatoes. Place them in a sauce pan and cover with water (around 1 cup to 1 and 1/2 cups), then bring to a boil. Once the potatoes are tender, remove from the stove.
4. Add the cooked potatoes, 1/2 cup of the cooking water, cashews, nutritional yeast, soy milk (or almond milk), mustard, garlic, onion powder, salt and smoked paprika into a blender jar. Then, blend until smooth.
5. Preheat oven to 180ºC.
6. To build the lasagna, take a look at the graphic on the post to see the exact order of the layers. Start by pouring about 1/2 cup tomato sauce into a 25x18x6 cm (or similar) baking dish and line with no-boil lasagna noodles (I used three on each layer). Then add 1/3 of the vegetable mixture. Cover with cheesy sauce (1/2 cup approximately). Add another layer of noddles, then vegetables and then another 1/2 cup of cheesy sauce. Do this last step one more time. Finally, line with the last layer of lasagna noodles and cover with the rest of the tomato sauce and cheesy sauce. Mix and spread both sauces using a spoon.
7. Bake for 30 minutes at 180ºC (middle rack of the oven). 
8. Remove from the over and let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Notes

• If you like spicy food, add a bit of tabasco to the tomato sauce.
• Store the left-overs in an air-tight container and in the fridge for up to 3 days. 

Courses Mains

Cuisine low-fat, soy-free