These past few days have been an absolute blast! So glad I was able to take a few days off work on such short notice to spend time with Iker and Kim. And with some beautiful weather to boot! I tortured them on Wednesday by taking them on a 5 mile tour of town with Maia and we ended up at central park enjoying a picnic lunch.
In true "Ike's visiting" fashion, we also enjoyed a few good brews and of course a couple of movies - The Fighter and The A Team - both were really good!
And of course, I made them eat many of my kitchen experiments. Some of them weren't true experiments, but new to them dishes (like oatmeal with carrots in it...!) and one was a total experiment and something new to all of us - vegan lasagna!
Lately (as you can probably tell) I've been trying to create more vegan dishes, not that my intent is to become a vegan (at this point), but since we are not eating too much meat anymore and dairy doesn't always "agree" with me, most of my experiments just naturally go in that direction.
So the other day I was dreaming of lasagna and trying to come up with a suitable substitute for the creamy ricotta layer. I've seen recipes that call for using tofu, but I am not so much a fan. So I decided to take a chance and use beans as a replacement. Total win!
Vegan Lasagna
A veggie packed lasagna that screams comfort food. Served up with a slice of garlic toast and you've got heaven on a plate! Even the meat eaters in your life will leave the table utterly satisfied.
In the mix::
- 1/2 onion - sliced
- 2 cups chopped broccoli florets
- 3 carrots - grated (about 1 1/4 cups)
- 8 oz mushrooms - rinsed and sliced
- 1 small zucchini - sliced as thinly as you can
- 1 eggplant - sliced into thin rounds, salted and rinsed
- 1 box whole wheat lasagna noodles - cooked according to package (9 noodles)
- 3 cups cooked navy beans
- 1/4 cup basil leaves
- 3 cloves garlic - peeled
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 cups of your favorite marinara sauce (recipe below for a new PS household staple!)
Pre-heat your oven to 400*
Roast eggplant rounds until lightly browned - about 20 minutes, flipping once. Set aside.
In a large saucepan over medium heat, saute onion until lightly browned. Remove from pan and set aside. Do the same with the broccoli, carrots and mushrooms. I did all of these separately and without oil. This was a quick process as each veggie was only in the pan for 1-3 minutes.
In a food processor, add beans, basil, and garlic. Process until smooth and creamy, adding water a few teaspoons at a time if needed. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Prepare your lasagna. In your baking dish, spread about 1/2 cup of your sauce, add three lasagna noodles, a generous portion of your bean mixture, layer with half of your veggies and spoon on some more sauce. Repeat layer once more (noodles, beans, veggies, sauce) ending with the final three noodles topped with sauce.
Bake in a 350* oven until bubbly, about 45 minutes.
I was a little leery of this at first, especially since I used a pan that was way too small! And you know...making a vegan lasagna for your brother and his girlfriend that you are meeting for the first time - the pressure was on! Thankfully everything worked and the dish got eight thumbs up.
The bean mixture was spot on and really did have the texture/flavor of ricotta cheese. I didn't end up using all of the puree, but think I will next time and make thicker layers.
I contemplated skipping the lasagna noodles and subbing in zucchini, but thought that would be a little overboard and i didn't want to scare away Ike's girlfriend too fast!
The sauce I used was another new creation. I normally make my own pasta sauce using canned tomatoes, and don't get me wrong - I love it, but wanted to try something new.
Roasted Red Pepper & Garlic Tomato Sauce
A great combination of flavors - this could be used as spaghetti sauce or thinned out a bit with some veggie stock to make a delicious tomato soup!
In the mix::
- 2 large yellow onions - quartered
- 1 jalapeno - cut in half (seeds left in)
- 4 red bell peppers - quartered
- 10 small roma tomatoes - halved and squeezed of their juices (reserve the juices for later)
- 3 whole garlic heads
- 3 T olive oil
- 4 T tomato paste
- 1 T balsamic vinegar
- 1 t each oregano, parsley, red pepper flakes
- 1/3 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves - chopped
In a large bowl, coat the onions, jalapeno, peppers and tomatoes with the olive oil. Spread onto two sheet pans and roast at 400* until browned, stirring occasionally - about 40 minutes.
Place un-peeled heads of garlic onto a corner of one of the sheet pans and let roast with the veggies.
Remove the veggies to a pot, add in the reserved tomato juices and bring to a simmer. Set the garlic aside to cool.
Into the pot, add tomato paste, vinegar, oregano, parsley and red pepper flakes (if you like your sauce a little spicy - the jalapeno was not enough for me!).
When garlic is cool enough to handle, slice in half and squeeze out the pulp. Add to pot.
Using an immersion blender, puree the sauce until as smooth or chunky as you like. Add in fresh basil and remove from heat.
That looks so good! I have never wanted to make a vegan dish before, but I actually want to make that!
ReplyDeleteYum! I have to try this. We have been craving lasagna for awhile but weren't sure what to do since I am vegan :)
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