Vegan Spinach-Mushroom Lasagna Marinara

If you think lasagna can't be amazing without massive amounts of cheese, prepare to have your mind blown. This lasagna rules. It is a variation of the "Lasagne Marinara with Spinach" from Veganomicon, which can be fairly different depending on which ricotta, sauce, and vegetables you choose to use, and whether or not you choose to use a couple other optional ingredients. I'll be including the ones I used for this specific dish.

Ingredients

Marinara (Caramelized Onion Variation):

1 medium-sized onion, sliced thinly
2-3 tbsp olive oil
8 cloves garlic
2 (28 oz) cans crushed tomatoes
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
A few pinches of freshly ground pepper


Tofu-Basil Ricotta:

2 pounds extra firm tofu (don't forget to press your tofu for an hour beforehand)
4 tsp lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
Pinch of freshly ground pepper
20 or so fresh basil leaves (roll 4-5 leaves up, cigarette-style, and chop width-wise every 1/8 inch or so & repeat until all leaves are chopped into thin slices)
4 tsp olive oil
1/2 cup nutritional yeast (it's still good if you don't have this, but you lose some "cheesy" flavor)


Everything else:

1 package of lasagna noodles (I prefer whole grain)
2 pounds spinach (or other greens)
2 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper


Go ahead and make the ricotta and marinara before you worry about the other stuff. You'll probably also want to have your oven preheating to 375 degrees F.


To make the ricotta, use a pretty large bowl, and mush up the (hopefully already pressed) tofu with your hands until it's crumbly. Add the lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, & basil. Mush it up with your hands again until it's the texture of ricotta cheese. Then, add the olive oil and nutritional yeast. You probably want to stir with a fork or spatula now, because it'll be pretty messy. Cover and stick it in the fridge until you're ready to assemble the lasagna.

Now make the marinara. Sweat the onion in a pot or saucepan, covered, over medium-low for around 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. If it starts browning, it's too hot. Now caramelize the onions. Turn the heat up a little, for about 15 minutes, until the onions start to brown. Add the garlic and saute for about a minute, then add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes.

While the marinara is simmering, prepare the mushrooms and spinach. Saute the mushrooms over medium/medium-high until they've released all their juices, then set them aside. Steam the spinach until it's wilted and bright green, then squeeze out the water and chop it coarsely. When the spinach and mushrooms are finished and at room-temperature, I'd recommend mixing them into the ricotta to make the lasagna easier to assemble.

While the mushrooms and spinach are cooling, cook the lasagna noodles according to the package directions. Rinse them when they've finished so that they stop cooking.

Now it's time to assemble the lasagna. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F, if you haven't already. Using a 9x13" pan, layer about half a cup of the sauce on the bottom of the pan, then top with 5-6 noodles. Top the noodles with half the ricotta and about a third of the marinara, then add more noodles and repeat. Cover with the rest of the noodles and top off with the rest of the marinara.

Cover the pan tightly with a double layer of foil. Bake for 30-35 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 20, until the edges of the noodles start to brown and the sauce is bubbly. Let it cool for 10 minutes or so before trying to slice it, or you'll end up with a mess.

I served this with baby spring mix salad with Italian dressing, French deli bread brushed with olive oil and garlic, and Rex Goliath cabernet sauvignon. Enjoy!