(mentioned on p. 41) Chef AJ’s Disappearing Lasagna recipe
http://healthygirlskitchen.com/2011/03/unprocessed-chef-ajs-disappearing.html
2 boxes of no boil rice lasagna noodles (I used 1 box of whole wheat from Whole Foods and followed the directions on the box, boiling them for 4 minutes and then rinsing each noodle well in cold water) 6 cups oil-free marinara sauce
Filling No. 1: 1 box extra firm tofu, drained and wrapped in paper towel to remove excess moisture OR 2 15 oz. cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed 2 oz. fresh basil leaves (I used 2 Tbsp dried) 1 cup pine nuts, raw cashews or hemp seeds 2 cloves garlic 1/4 cup low-sodium miso (I used regular miso)
1/4 cup nutritional yeast 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes 2 pounds frozen chopped spinach or 1 pound frozen chopped kale
Filling No. 2: 2 pounds sliced mushrooms 2 garlic cloves 1/4 cup tamari 1 large red onion
4 oz can sliced olives, rinsed and drained (optional)
Faux Parmesan: In a food processor, grind 1 cup raw cashews or almonds, 1/2 cup nutritional yeast and 1 Tbsp of salt-free seasoning, until a powdery mixture is achieved. If you like it more chunky, process less.
Make the filling in a food processor fitted with the “S” blade, by adding tofu, basil, garlic, lemon juice, miso, nutritional yeast, nuts and red pepper flakes. Puree until smooth. Add drained spinach or kale and process again.
In a large non-stick saute pan, saute chopped onion in 2 Tbsp water or broth until translucent, about 8 minutes, adding more water if necessary. Add garlic, mushrooms and tamari and saute until browned. Taste mixture, adding more garlic/tamari according to your taste. Cook until mushrooms appear to be glazed and there is no more liquid left in pan.
Pour 3 cups of the sauce in a 9″x13″ lasagna pan. Place one layer of noodles on top. Cover noodles with half of tofu/spinach mix, then with half of mushroom mix. Place another layer of noodles on top and add remaining halves of tofu and mush. Place one more layer of noodles on top and smother evenly with remaining sauce. Sprinkle olives on top of sauce and sprinkle with faux parmesan. (I put black olives on top of half of the casserole for my husband and put thinly sliced red peppers on my half).
Bake uncovered 375 degrees for one hour. Let sit for 10 minutes before serving.
Wonderful lasagna recipe! This lasagna is delicious and satisfying without containing much fat and, of course, is 100% vegan.
The spinach layer is so tasty, it was hard to stop eating it by the spoonful as I put together the lasagna. I made the mistake of simmering the mushrooms too long, so they suddenly released most of their liquid. I strained and set aside the mushrooms and reduced the liquid on a low simmer until it was fairly viscous, then mixed it in with the mushrooms. When assembling the lasagna, I added in a layer of sliced boiled potatoes and two extra layers of noodles – a very tall lasagna, so the high rimmed lasagna dish was good. I omitted the cashew/nutritional yeast topping, which is probably great, but the final dish was full of flavor without it.
I love whole wheat lasagna noodles, but couldn’t find them anywhere, not at Whole Foods, Staff of Life in Santa Cruz, or Elroy’s in Monterey, so I used brown rice lasagna noodles and they were good. Finally found DeLallo Italian Foods online and ordered several boxes of whole wheat lasagna noodles and some fat free marinara for next time.