Lentil Lasagna.
This vegan Lentil Lasagna has over 25g protein per serving, so it’s the perfect dinner recipe for when you want something delicious and comforting, but that will still support your strength training.
On top of that, it’s incredibly straightforward to make, and doesn’t require any of the long processes associated with a typical lasagne. Win, win!
Serves 6
Equipment.
large oven dish
saucepan
sieve
sharp knife & chopping board
blender
kettle
Ingredients.
300g lasagne sheets
50g vegan ‘mozzarella’
15g vegan ‘hard cheese’, parmesan alternative
1 tbsp olive oil
Handful of fresh basil
Black pepper, to taste
Tofu ‘Bechamel’:
100g cashews
580g silken tofu, drained
½ tsp garlic granules
Juice of a whole lemon
½ tsp onion granules
20g nutritional yeast
1 tsp salt
Lentil Ragu:
200g red lentils
½ tbsp salt
1 litre water
690g jar of tomato passata
1 tbsp soy sauce
300g baby spinach, washed
400g tin green lentils, drained and rinsed
Method.
Preheat the oven to 200c
Boil the kettle and cover the cashews with boiling water. Set aside to soak for min. 15mins (longer if your blender is not particularly powerful!)
Add the red lentils, 1lt water and 1/2 tbsp salt to a saucepan and bring to boil. Cover and simmer for 20mins
2. Meanwhile, roughly chop the spinach and set aside
3. Put all the ingredients for the tofu béchamel into a blender and blend on high until super smooth. Taste to adjust the seasoning if necessary, then set aside
4. Once the lentils have cooked, drain out most of the excess water using a sieve and return to the saucepan. Add the green lentils along with the whole jar of passata. Rinse the passata jar with a splash of water and add this to the pan also. Finally add the soy sauce and bring everything to a simmer
5. Add the spinach to the lentil ragu and stir until wilted. Taste to adjust the seasoning if necessary, then remove from the heat
Spoon 1/3 of the lentil ragu into a large oven-proof dish. Tear over a few basil leaves and then pour over 1/3 of the tofu ‘béchamel’. Cover this with a layer of lasagna sheets, breaking them to fit the dish where necessary, then repeat this process exactly the same for a second time
For the third and final layer, pour over the remaining 1/3 of the lentil ragu and top with the basil leaves as before. This time, layer the lasagne sheets directly on top and pour the final 1/3 of the tofu ‘béchamel’ on top of the lasagne sheets.
Sprinkle over the vegan cheeses, scatter some freshly ground black pepper, and drizzle with olive oil
Bake for around 35mins or until cooked through, golden and bubbling. Leave to rest for 10mins before serving
