I love lasagna, but I’ve never made it before. There have been a plethora of lasagna pics circulating around social media and it piqued my interest enough to take a shot at making a batch.
I know it takes a lot of work to make lasagna, but it didn’t take long before I was in over my head. I quickly found out there’s a trick to cooking lasagna noodles. They stick together almost immediately, even though I added them into the pot one by one and tried to keep them apart with a wooden fork and spatula. I ended up with a 1-inch thick brick of noodles that were impossible to separate. So I started a second batch. This time, I dusted both sides of each noodles with cooking oil spray before putting it in the water. It worked!
I also decided to give the veggies a head start on cooking by roasting them briefly in the oven. This step went well, but it just added more time and effort to the overall process. I probably could skip this step the next time and just cook the lasagna for a bit longer in the oven to ensure thorough cooking. The more I think about this, the more I think lasagna would be a great thing to make in a slow cooker. I just don’t happen to own one.
By the time it was done, I have to say this turned out really well and made a very large quantity. However, as my husband is out of town, I’ll be eating this for breakfast, lunch and dinner for the better part of a week!
Ingredients (serves 10 – 12)
12 lasagne noodles
2 14-ounces cans no-salt diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 large eggplant – cut lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices
2 yellow squash – cut lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices
2 zucchini – cut lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices
24-ounce jar roasted red peppers (not marinated) – cut into strips
10 ounces shredded vegan mozzarella cheese (or dairy, if preferred) – I used Follow Your Heart brand which worked well
salt, if desired
Pesto
1 cup tightly packed basil leaves
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Lightly dust 3 baking sheets with cooking oil spray. Place the eggplant on one sheet in a single layer, the yellow squash on another, and the zucchini on the last. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper and salt, if desired. Bake for 5 minutes. They should have started cooking, but not be fully cooked.
- While vegetables are cooking, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Lightly dust each side of the lasagna noodles with cooking oil spray and place into the boiling water one at a time. Cook for 5 – 7 minute until al dente. Remove from the water and place on a kitchen towel, tin foil, or other surface they will not stick to.
- Place the diced tomatoes, garlic powder, onion powder and dried oregano in a food processor and blend until smooth. Salt to taste, if desired. The sauce will be used in 3 equal quantities.
- Spread 1/3 of the sauce on the bottom of a 15 x 11 baking dish. Place 4 noodles (slightly overlapping) on top of the sauce. Place a layer of eggplant on top of the noodles.
- Place another layer of 4 noodles on top of the lasagna. Then spread 1/3 of the tomato sauce on top of the noodles, followed by a layer of yellow squash.
- Place the last layer of 4 noodles over the squash. Add a layer of zucchini. Add a layer of the roasted red pepper strips on top, then cover with the last 1/3 of tomato sauce.
- Evenly spread the cheese over the top. Cover with tin foil (make sure it’s tented so the cheese doesn’t stick to the foil).
- Bake for 1 hour at 400 degrees. Remove the foil and place under the broiler to finish melting the cheese and create a golden brown crust, if desired.
- Let sit for 15 minutes before serving.
Andrea Rolando says
So the Lemon Pesto has no garlic? What is that, basil lemon sauce?
Sounds delicious…
Amy says
Thanks, Andre. It is!