The best G-Damn Lasagna
Be prepared for the steps and time needed to complete this beast of a lasagna, but trust me when I say it is worth it. A food processor is going to be your best friend in prep, from the pesto, tofu ricotta, and the mushroom filling; the food processor is going to cut down the prep time considerably. There are a lot of notes, modifiers and substitutions on this one, be sure to check below if something doesn't work you!
Ingredients
Mushroom & Spinach Filling
- 454 grams Button, white, or Cremini Mushrooms Or a mix - Finely sliced
- 300 grams Spinach Fresh or frozen, thawed and drained
- 1 tbsp Butter
- 2 tbsp Pesto See Modifiers
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Tofu Ricotta
- 14 oz Extra Firm Tofu Pressed *See instructions
- ¼ cup Raw hulled Sunflower Seeds
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp Lemon Juice or a few drops Lemon Extract
- ½ tsp Lemon Zest If you have lemons on hand
- ¼ tsp salt
- 3-4 cloves Garlic Or 2 tbsp Garlic Powder
- ¼ cup Nutritional Yeast
Meat Sauce
- 2 lbs Ground Meat Beef, Chicken, Turkey, etc
- ½ Onion Diced
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 28 oz Can Crushed Tomatoes
- 6 Sundried Tomatoes Chopped
- 1 cup Chicken Stock or beef, mushroom, vegetable, etc. Match your protein
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 2 tbsp Basil
- 1 tsp Lemon Juice Or a few drops Lemon Extract
- ½ tsp Lemon Zest Optional
- 1 tsp White Vinegar Adjust to taste if sauce is bitter
- 2 tbsp Pesto
- 1 tbsp Garlic Powder
- Salt and Pepper To taste
Assembly
- 9-12 No Boil Noodles Depending on pan shape
- 2 cups Shredded Cheese
Instructions
Mushroom & Spinach Filling
- Remove any tough stems from the mushrooms, I usually leave the stems on. If you have a food processor, run the mushrooms through the slicer. Or, if cutting by hand slice them into coin width pieces.
- In a large pan, heat the butter until melted and add the mushrooms. Sauté for a few minutes.
- Add in the spinach and salt, sauté spinach and mushrooms together for 3-4 minutes until the fresh spinach is wilted or the frozen spinach is full mixed in and heated.
- Remove from heat and mix in pesto. Taste and adjust as needed, as more salt or pepper, mix in more pesto, whatever works for you.
- Scoop the mixture into a heat safe bowl and set aside. You can set it in the fridge once cool and prep this the day before.
Tofu Ricotta
- If you haven't pressed tofu before, it's super easy. Remove the tofu from it's package and wrap it in a clean dish towel. Set a small plate or cutting board on top, just something flat. Then set something moderately heavy on top, a few cans, jar of peanut butter, knife block is my personal favourite. This will ease the water in the tofu out and allow it to soak in more flavour.
- Dump the sunflower seeds into a food processor with a cutting blade and run into they are chopped into small pieces.
- Break your pressed tofu into slightly smaller pieces and add to the food processor. Run again the tofu and sunflower seeds are blended together into a slightly smooth mixture.
- Add in the olive oil, lemon juice and zest (or lemon extract), salt, garlic and nutritional yeast. Blend until completely incorporated.
- Scoop the mixture into a bowl and set aside. You can set it in the fridge and prep this the day before.
Meat Sauce
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet and add chopped onion. Stir the onion into the oil so it is glossy and shiny.
- Add in the ground meat, this batch I used ground turkey. Start breaking up the meat into the onion and let it sit to brown for a few minutes before stirring and breaking up again. Continue until the meat is almost completely cooked and brown.
- Add in the crushed tomatoes, chicken stock and chopped sundried tomatoes. Let simmer for a few minutes.
- Add in the seasonings, Worcestershire, basil, lemon, white vinegar, pesto, garlic, salt and pepper. Let simmer for at least 5 minutes.
- Taste and adjust if needed. If there is a bitterness add a little more vinegar, more pesto, garlic, salt and pepper, all up to you. Sauce should be on the wet side, add more chicken stock if it seems dry.
Assembly
- In a 9x13 pan start with a thin layer of the meat sauce (about 1/3) and top with a layer of uncooked no boil lasagna noodles.
- Then spread the mushroom and spinach mixture evenly across the pan and top with a layer of noodles
- Spread the ricotta evenly over the noodles and add dollops of meat sauce (about 1/3) on top. Top with a layer of noodles
- Top with the remaining meat sauce (about 1/3)
- Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes at 400 °F
- Pull pan from the oven, remove the foil, cover with cheese and bake for an additional 15 minutes until cheese is melted and edges begin to brown. If you like a little crunch on the cheese and edges you can set it under the broiler for a minute develop that amazing browning and texture.
- Allow the pan to rest for about 5 minutes so it doesn't fall apart when you lift it out of the pan. Cut it into 8 sections and serve, enjoy with a salad and some garlic bread, this is food coma central!
Notes
Rylan's Rating: 10/10 - Un-freaking-believable! (He had two pieces)