I love bringing delicious, plant-based dishes to share at potlucks or holiday dinners. Often, everyone loves these dishes so much that I go home hungry! Instead of coming up with another side dish to share, I came up with this satisfying lasagna recipe.

I hope this substantial, yet healthy recipe pleases everyone at your holiday gatherings. Hopefully you won’t leave hungry after a large slice of this protein, fiber, and veggie filled lasagna!

Enjoy!

– Katie

Serves 8, Prep time 40 min, Cook time 45 minutes

Recipe:

Lentil Sauce:

  • 1 ½ cups brown or green lentils (cooked according to instructions on package)
  • 1 large carrot, diced small
  • 2 ribs celery, diced small
  • 1 large yellow onion diced
  • 2 cups diced mushrooms (any variety)
  • 1 tbs fresh thyme, minced
  • 1 tbs fresh rosemary, minced
  • 1 tbs Italian herb mix
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tsp low sodium soy sauce
  • 2 tsp brown or coconut sugar
  • 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
  • 2 24oz jars Marinara sauce
  • 1 16 oz can crushed tomatoes
  • 1 package of lasagna noodles (either pre boiled or “oven ready”, gluten free if necessary

Almond Ricotta:

  • 1 ½ cup raw almonds
  • 1 1lb package of silken tofu (other textures would likely work)
  • ¼ cup nutritional yeast
  • 2 tbs lemon juice
  • 2 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tsp onion powder
  • 1 cup fresh basil, chopped
  • 1 tsp salt

Method:

  1. Begin by placing the almonds in a large bowl and cover them with boiling water. Set aside. Cook the lentils according to package instructions.
  2. In a large soup pot, combine the diced mushrooms, onion, carrot, celery, and minced garlic on a medium high heat. Add soy sauce, sugar, herbs, and balsamic vinegar. Cover and simmer until the veggies soften and release a little liquid, about 5 minutes.
  3. Add the lentils, marinara sauce, and crushed tomatoes. Stir to combine, and cover to simmer for about 20 minutes.
  4. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. While the sauce simmers, prepare the almonds for the ricotta. Drain the almonds in a colander. Remove the loosened skins by pinching them between your fingers. This is a great task for little hands in the kitchen!
  5. Place all of the ricotta ingredients except the basil in a high-powered blender or food processor and blend to combine. The texture will not be perfectly smooth. Mix in the basil to the ricotta mixture with a spoon.
  6. To assemble the lasagna, spoon about a cup of the lentil sauce into the bottom of a 9” x 13” pan and spread evenly over the bottom. Lay 3 or 4 noodles (depending on their size) over the sauce. Spoon a little under two cups of lentil sauce over the noodles. Dot this layer with about a dozen spoonfuls of ricotta. Repeat this method until there are four layers of noodles, finished on top with the last of the lentil sauce and spoonfuls of ricotta.
  7. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Allow to cool uncovered for at least 10 minutes before serving.

*Notes: To make this recipe at little more indulgent, browned plant-based sausage can be added to the lentil sauce before simmering. Two or three links would likely suffice!

If you are in a time crunch, macadamia nuts or cashews can be used instead of almonds – these will not need to be peeled after soaking.

To see what else I am making this holiday season, visit me @coconut_katie