Chef AJ's Disappearing Lasagna
Chef AJ's Disappearing Lasagna is a rich, hearty, plant-based dish that vanishes before your eyes! Perfect for gatherings or meal prep, and will leave everyone asking for seconds.
Equipment
- Food processor
Ingredients
- 2 boxes no-boil brown rice lasagna noodles
- 6 cups oil-free marinara sauce
- 2 15 ounce cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup pine nuts raw cashews or hemp seeds
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- ¼ cup low-sodium miso
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 ounces fresh basil leaves
- ⅛ tsp red chile flakes plus more if desired
- 2 pounds frozen chopped spinach or 1 pound frozen kale defrosted, drained and squeezed to remove all liquid
- 1 large red onion finely chopped
- 2 pounds cremini or baby bella mushrooms sliced or finely chopped
- ¼ cup low-sodium tamari
- 2 cloves garlic plus more as desired
- 1 4 ounce can sliced black olives, drained and rinsed
- Faux Parmesan or Enlightened Faux Parmesan
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375° F.
- To make the filling, put the beans, pine nuts (cashews or hemp seeds), nutritional yeast, miso, lemon juice, basil, garlic, and red chile flakes in a food processor fitted with the “S” blade and process until smooth. Add the spinach or kale and process until well incorporated.
- In a large nonstick sauté pan, sauté the onion in 2 tablespoons of water until translucent, about 8 minutes, adding more water 1 tablespoon at a time, if necessary, to prevent sticking. Add the mushrooms, tamari, and garlic and sauté until the mushrooms are browned. Taste and add more garlic or tamari as desired. Cook until the mushrooms look glazed and there is no more liquid left in the pan.
- To assemble the lasagna, pour 3 cups of marinara sauce into the lasagna pan or a 9x13 pan. Place one layer of the noodles on top of the sauce. Cover the noodles with half of the bean mixture, then cover the bean mixture with half of the mushroom mixture. Place another layer of noodles over the mushroom mixture and top with the remaining bean mixture followed by the remaining mushroom mixture. Place one more layer of noodles on top of the mushroom mixture and evenly cover with the remaining marinara sauce.
- Sprinkle the olives over the top and dust liberally with Faux Parmesan.
- Bake uncovered for 1 hour. Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
- If you have time, marinate the mushrooms in the tamari several hours in advance or even the night before.
- Make sure the top layer of noodles is fully covered with sauce.
- If you are avoiding all sodium, omit the miso and use California Balsamic Gilroy Garlic vinegar (or any balsamic vinegar) in place of the tamari.
- You can use lasagna noodles made from hearts of palm, available online and at many natural food stores.
- This recipe is a fan favorite! People always ask me how well this freezes. I honestly don’t know as there have never been any leftovers!