Lasagna is the ultimate Italian comfort food, and you can get it everywhere in New York City. Whether you’re at a pizza joint, an Italian restaurant, or a diner, this gooey, cheesy, tomato saucy, noodley goodness awaits your mere order.
NYC Vegan co-author Ethan Ciment grew up eating lasagna because his mother would make it on the weekends in order to have leftovers for the coming week. Michael Suchman, on the other hand, never ate lasagna until he started making it (at Ethan’s request).
Ethan and Michael have created a vegan lasagna recipe that is the perfect first meal to make for your future-vegan, currently omnivore boyfriend or girlfriend. Really. You just have to take our word for it.
Vegan Lasagna
Lasagna is the ultimate Italian comfort food, and you can get it everywhere in New York City. Whether you’re at a pizza joint, an Italian restaurant, or a diner, this gooey, cheesy, tomato saucy, noodley goodness awaits your mere order.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 12 lasagna noodles
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium onion, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 pound fresh spinach, washed and undried
- 3 cups tomato sauce
- 3 1/2 cups nondairy ricotta
- 1/2 cup shredded nondairy mozzarella cheese
- 1/4 cup nondairy Parmesan
Instructions
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Lightly oil an 18 x 12-inch baking sheet and set aside. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the salt and the lasagna noodles. Cook until the noodles are pliable, about 6 minutes. Drain the noodles and arrange them individually on the prepared baking sheet so they don’t stick together.
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Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes, or until it is soft and translucent. Add the garlic and sauté for 30 more seconds. Add the spinach in batches, one handful at a time. Toss well to incorporate it with the onion and garlic. As it wilts, add more spinach. Continue until all the spinach is wilted. Transfer the spinach mixture to a colander and drain out as much liquid as possible. Use your hands to press out the liquid. You should end up with about one-third the volume you started with. Set aside.
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Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly oil a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Spread 3/4 cup tomato sauce on the bottom of the dish. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles, side-by-side, over the sauce. Spread one-third of the nondairy ricotta over the noodles. Top the nondairy ricotta with one-third of the spinach mixture. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons mozzarella over the spinach. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the nondairy Parmesan over the mozzarella. Repeat this process 2 more times: sauce, noodles, nondairy ricotta, spinach, mozzarella, and nondairy Parmesan. End with a layer of noodles. Top the last layer of noodles with the remaining sauce, mozzarella, and Parmesan.
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Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove the foil and cook 10 more minutes. Remove the lasagna from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes
From NYC Vegan, copyright © 2017 by Michael Suchman and Ethan Ciment. Used by permission. Photo by Jackie Sobon.
