This lasagna is thick and creamy and has so much great texture! You've got the chewy noodles, the creamy tofu "ricotta" filling, the crunchy vegetables and the rich pasta sauce. All of those elements combined make for an amazing, flavorful meal!
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I'm excited to share this recipe for a few reasons. For starters, it's delicious! This lasagna is thick and creamy and has so much great texture. You've got the chewy noodles, the creamy tofu "ricotta" filling, the crunchy vegetables and the rich pasta sauce. All of those elements combined make for an amazing, flavorful meal!
The second reason I'm excited about this recipe is that it is, in some ways, a milestone in my plant-based, cooking journey. I made my first vegan lasagna not long after I took on a plant-based diet and it was okay, but not great. I didn't make enough "cheese" or vegetable filling so the thickness of the lasagna was...well, non existent. Brett and I liked the flavor, but we had to eat two or three pieces to get full! Fast forward about a year and making this lasagna proves that I've learned a thing or two, which is exciting! There's no skimp-age on filling here and I'd proudly serve this to any of my meat and cheese loving friends.
When I first decided to take on a plant based diet I figured I would never eat yogurt, meat or cheese again. And in some ways, at least for as long as I choose to eat a plant-based diet, I won't. But as I've continued experimenting more with how to cook with plants, I've discovered that it's possible to create foods that mimic the taste and texture or certain animal products. For example, Dana's Vegan Nacho Cheese tastes so similar to the real deal, it's amazing.
...and this Vegan Vegetable Lasagna has a tofu ricotta filling that is so thick, creamy and flavorful, you'll think it's full of ricotta, cheesy goodness...but it's not! Brett was so impressed after just one bite with how much the tofu filling tasted like real, ricotta cheese.
I hope you all enjoy this recipe as much as Brett and I do! I plan to make it for a group of my friends next week, so I'll share with you what they think after they eat it! Gulp...
📖 Recipe
Vegan Vegetable Lasagna Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 cups pasta sauce choose your favorite + more for serving if desired
- 9 lasagna noodles
VEGETABLE FILLING:
- 2 medium zucchini chopped
- 8-10 ounces mushrooms chopped
- ½ yellow onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
TOFU "RICOTTA" FILLING:
- 2 blocks firm tofu 28 ounces
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 cup packed fresh basil
- 1 cup packed fresh parsley
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 °F and lightly grease a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
- Start by pressing your tofu. To do this, drain the liquid from the packages and remove the tofu blocks and wrap them in paper towels. Then wrap the the blocks again in a hand towel. Place the blocks on a plate and place heavy books on top of the blocks to press the liquid out of the tofu. Let the sit 10-15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook your lasagna noodles according to the package directions, 3 noodles at a time. While your noodles are boiling, prepare your vegetables and tofu ricotta filling.
- To prepare the vegetable filling, chop up your vegetables and heat a large skillet over medium heat. Using a little oil or non-stick spray, sauté the onion and garlic until the onions are translucent. Add in the zucchini and sauté for about 5 minutes until softened. Lastly add in the mushrooms and red pepper flakes and cook until the mushrooms have cooked through. Turn off the heat and pour the vegetable into a large bowl to rest.
- Once the tofu has finished pressing, place it along with the rest of the tofu ricotta filling into a food processor. Process until smooth. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
- To assemble the lasagna start by spreading ½ cup of pasta sauce on the bottom of your prepared baking dish. Lay three of the cooked lasagna noodles on top of the sauce and spread ½ of the tofu ricotta filling evenly across the noodles. Using a slotted spoon, sprinkles ½ of the vegetable filling across the tofu filling. Make sure you let as much of the cooking water from the vegetables drain before adding them to the lasagna.
- Repeat the process by adding 1 cup pasta sauce, 3 noodles, the remaining tofu filling and then rest of the vegetable filling. Spread 1 more cup of pasta sauce across the vegetable before finishing with the last 3 noodles and ½ cup pasta sauce.
Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for 10 more minutes, or until heated through. - Let cool slightly before cutting into 12 squares.
- Serve topped with some more pasta sauce and fresh basil.
Lynn says
This sounds amazing. Do you think that extra firm silken tofu would work for the ricotta? I have several boxes left from an Amazon order 🙄
Faith VanderMolen says
Hmm, good question Lynn! Silken tofu is a lot softer and a bit runny, so while it might taste okay, it would probably just have a soupier texture. I guess it's up to you! I've never tried it so I can't vouch for the final result. If you try it, please let us know how it turns out!
Tina Muir says
This looks wonderful Faith, and it is funny you mentioned about trying it multiple times, and by the end being proud of your result to serve to meat eaters. That is how I feel about my butternut squash lasagna now. Thanks so much for joining us for meatless monday! We missed you last week 🙂
Faith says
I remember that recipe you shared! It looked so good! That should be my next lasagna experiment...Vegan Butternut Squash Lasagna:)
Ellie says
Very true! Makes a change to see soneome spell it out like that. 🙂
Pragati // Simple Medicine says
You've successfully made my stomach growl at work 🙂 I love, love, love lasagna. I can't wait to try this #meatlessmonday
Faith says
Yesssss! I hope you try it...and love it! Thanks for saying hi Pragati!
Julie @ Running in a Skirt says
This looks soooo good. I'll have to give it a try and see if my hubby even knows 🙂 I like to wait until he is half way done to see if he can really tell a difference when I make healthy switches.
Terrible... I know 🙂
Great blog! Love your pic on the side!
Faith says
Thanks so much Julie! And you're not alone in the tricking husband tactic! But by now, my husband Brett usually knows I almost always make some kind of healthy substitute;) He loved this lasagna though and I hope your husband does too!
Deborah @ Confessions of a Mother Runner says
Wow creative! Never thought of using tofu instead of cheese. Looks great and adds extra protein. Thanks for linking up with us today! Happy Monday 🙂
Faith says
Thanks Deborah! So true, even though there's no meat this lasagna isn't skimping on protein:)