Having a lot of zucchini from the garden we have to use up and a jumbo one at that I decided I would attempt to make a vegetarian/vegan lasagna my family would like. This is a big challenge as neither of the girls are fans of lasagna (however recently my oldest loved a meatless lasagna made at a friend’s house) and I already knew the first thing my husband would say is “where is the meat?” I was pleasently shocked when my family, liked it! Well the youngest not so much but she can pick at things she loves so no telling if she liked it or not since she really didn’t try it.
“Cheesy” Green Tofu Lasagna
Makes a 9×13 pan
1 jumbo zucchini or 2-3 medium
1c chopped cooked kale, packed moisture removed cooled
1/2 yellow onion
3 cloves garlic
1/4c chopped fresh basil, packed
1/3c plus 1/4c nutritional yeast
1- 12 ounce package firm tofu (used Nasoya Organic Tofu Plus)
1- 1lb package silken tofu (used Nasoya Organic Silken Tofu)
16 ounces shredded mozzarella (dairy free for vegan or regular shredded mozzarella if you don’t need dairy free)
1- 23.5 ounce jar spaghetti sauce
sea salt and pepper
1-2TBSP extra virgin olive oil
3 tomatoes sliced, optional
Peel zucchini and slice into long strips/8″ thick avoiding the middle soft seedy section. You will need enough for 4 layers in a 9×13 pan, plan for a couple of extras in case they rip. Salt zucchini strips and place in a colander to drain for approx 20 minutes. Prepare firm tofu by pressing it. Rinse firm tofu and place on a plate lined with a few paper towels, place a few paper towels on top of the tofu and set a couple of heavy cookbooks on top. While waiting on the zucchini and tofu dice the onion. Heat a skillet over medium heat and add olive oil just to coat the pan, add onion and grate in garlic cloves. Stir the onions and garlic and cook a few minutes, about 5-7, stirring frequently until the onion is softened. Remove from heat and place the mixture in a medium glass bowl to cool. Drain silken tofu and in a small bowl mix together silken tofu, kale, 1/4 of a cup nutritional yeast, and a dash of salt and pepper. Rinse salt from zucchini and drain, pressing to remove moisture. In the bowl with onion and garlic add 1/3 cup of nutritional yeast, chopped basil, and 1 teaspoon salt. Crumble firm tofu into the onion, nutritional yeast, basil mixture and mix to combined. Heat griddle or grill pan to medium/low. Blot excess moisture from zucchini. Place a layer of zucchini on griddle or grill pan cooking for about 3o-45 seconds per side. If zucchini sticks spray griddle/grill pan with a non-stick spray, it did not stick to mine but will depend on pan using. Place cooked zucchini on a pan or plate until all piece are cooked or until cool enough to handle if you want to cook and assemble lasagna at the same time.
Preheat oven to 350. Assemble lasagna in the following order:
Sauce (just a thin layer)
layer of Zucchini
1/2 the Kale Cheese Mixture
Shredded Mozzarella
Sauce (just a thin layer)
layer of Zucchini
Crumble Tofu Mixture
Shredded Mozzarella
Sauce (just a thin layer)
layer of Zucchini
remaining Kale Cheese Mixture
Shredded Mozzarella
Sauce (just a thin layer)
layer of Zucchini
remaining sauce
Optional Tomato Slices
remaining Shredded Mozzarella
Cover lasagna with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil and continue cooking 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted, bubbly, and browning on the edges. Remove lasagna and set and cool approximately 10 minutes. Enjoy!
