Best Vegan Spinach Lasagna Recipe
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The No Boil Noodles:
Made with protein packed no boil lentil noodles, this lasagna is also gluten free, dairy-free, tofu-free and plant based. You could go for the whole wheat noodles if you prefer, whatever you choose just go for the “no boil” variety. I mean, why make extra work for yourself and precook the noodles right ?!
The Veggies:
I loaded up on both sauteed mushrooms and baby spinach to pack as much nutrition in every layer as possible. If mushrooms aren’t really your thing just replace them with artichoke hearts, so you’ll have a spinach and artichoke version instead.
If you want something different, zucchini, butternut squash or eggplant make a great filling too. Alternatively you can use this vegan bolognese sauce instead of all the veggies, keep everything else the same. Report back if you give that one a try.
The Cashew Ricotta Cheese
The magical ingredient in this lasagna is without a doubt my homemade vegan ricotta cheese. It can be prepared in advance together with all the fillings. You can even assemble your lasagna the day before, refrigerate then pop it in the oven when you want to serve it. You can prep it on Sunday then have fabulous lunches for the week ahead and make all your coworkers super jelly when you heat this baby up in the lunch room.
How To Layer the Lasagna
- Start with a layer of the best tomato sauce and spread it on the bottom of the pan like a blanket.
- Cover with a layer of no boil noodles slightly overlapping each other until the entire bottom is covered.
- Spread the cashew ricotta over the top of the noodles.
- Add your veggies, in our case the mushrooms and spinach.
- Spread another layer of tomato sauce and cover with another layer of the no boil noodles.
- Cover with the remaining sauce spread evenly over the top.
- Optional: finish with a few slices of plant based Gouda cheese from Follow Your Heart and a few large slices of heirloom tomatoes.
I wish I could say this was also a super quick recipe, but as you can see it needs some prep work.
The Best Vegan Lasagna Ever:
Can You Freeze this Lasagna ?
Absolutely, you can wrap the dish in plastic wrap and freeze before or after baking it up to 6 months. Remember to thaw out in the refrigerator before reheating or baking.
note: this recipe is actually WFPB (whole food plant based), so yes oil-free you guys! However, I did add a last layer of the smoked gouda cheese from Follow your Heart which does contain oil. That being said, if you are on a strict WFPB or Plantricious diet just omit this cheese layer and keep it super healthy.
More Pasta Recipes to Try:
How to Make the Best Vegan Spinach Lasagna:
Best Vegan Lasagna with Spinach and Ricotta
Ingredients
- 4.25 cups San Marzano Tomato Sauce
- 6 cups baby spinach
- 1 lb mushrooms -sliced ( or canned artichoke hearts)
- 1/2 onion -diced
- 12 oz no boil lentil lasagna noodles
- 6 oz vegan smoked Gouda cheese slices ( Follow Your Heart) - OPTIONAL
- 1 large heirloom tomato -sliced
- 1/3 cup basil leaves (for garnish)
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
Cashew Ricotta Cheese
- 2 cups raw cashews
- 3/4 cups water
- 1 lemon -juiced
- 2 cloves garlic -grated
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Prepare the tomato sauce in advance.
Make the Cashew Ricotta:
- Rinse and soak the cashew with hot water for 20 minutes. Drain and rinse again then add them to a powerful blender (or food processor) together with all the ingredients. Process until creamy and smooth. Refrigerate until needed.
Preheat oven to 400”F.
- Heat up a large skillet over medium flame. Add a splash of water and sautée the onion with a pinch of salt until translucent, about 5 minutes or so. Add the mushrooms and cook together another 10 minutes or so until wilted and the water has evaporated. Taste and season with sea salt. Set aside until needed.
- In the same skillet add another teaspoon of water and add the spinach. Sautee until wilted then season with a tiny pinch of sea salt. Transfer to a colander to drain. Once cool enough to handle use your hands to squeeze as much of the liquid as possible. Set aside.
- Brig out your lasagna pan ( 8X12 works fine) and spread 1.5 cups of the tomato sauce on the bottom. Layer enough of the lasagna noodles to slightly overlap each other and cover the bottom. You might need to break a couple of them to fill in any gaps on the sides depending on the shape of your pan.
- Add the cashew ricotta over the top and spread it across in an even layer. (Sprinkle with a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg at this point if desired).
- Top with the sautéed spinach and mushrooms then add 1.25 cups of the tomato sauce.
- Add another layer of the lasagna noodles slightly overlapping each other and finish with a layer of the remaining sauce.
- Finish with a layer of the vegan smoked gouda on top and the sliced heirloom tomatoes. Sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt and red pepper flakes.
- Cover the lasagna pan with aluminum foil ( or a lid) and transfer it to the preheated oven for 45 - 50 minutes until the noodles have cooked through.
- Allow to cool and set for a good 15 minutes before serving with the fresh basil on top.
- This recipe is actually WFPB (whole food plant based) + Plantricious. However you must omit the top vegan cheese layer to stay compliant.
Video
Notes
- If you are using cooked lasagna noodles instead of the no bake lentil or whole wheat noodles, you can cut back on the baking time to about 25 minutes, just enough for the flavors to marry and the cheese to melt.
- If you are on a WFPB oil-free diet simply omit the final smoked gouda cheese layer and your lasagna will be oil-free.
Nutrition
This is an amazing lasagna recipe, made it twice already and i plan to make it once a week from now on. Definitely making my own sauce too with the San Marzano Tomatoes, just a perfect recipe, thank you!
Absolutely delicious recipe! 5 stars for taste! It took a bit longer than 50 mins, popped it in for a further 15 mins. Can’t wait to take some to work for lunch and make all my colleagues jealous!
I just made it again myself at my husband’s request. It took mine 50 minutes in the oven but I make sure to preheat the oven for a good 30 minutes so maybe that’s a temperature difference why yours took longer. I noticed ovens vary so much from brand to brand and even location. So happy you loved it 🙂
Thank you for this delicious recipe, it is amazing! I made it for dinner and my non vegan husband loved it! FYI…the cashew ricotta recipe is soooooo yummy! I made garlic bread and served it with a small dish of the ricotta and marinara for dipping! Thanks again for sharing!
Soooo happy, doing the happy dance over here fr you! Enjoy!
Very good. I made my ricotta from blanched almonds and topped with Dayia moxx.
Sounds delicious, i have to try the almond ricotta version!
I made this recipe exactly as is, and my husband and I absolutely LOVED it! Such wonderful flavors! Love the easy sauce recipe and love the ricotta recipe! This recipe is a real keeper! So happy I have found a “company dish” to make for non-WFPB friends and family! Thank you!!!!!
My husband made this last night and we loved it but is it really only two layers of lasagne noodles?
So happy you guys loved the lasagna. Yes I only used two layers of noodles but of course you can adapt it and go as tall as you like 🙂
Thank you. Can you freeze it before you bake it?
Can you make this ahead of time and freeze it before you bake it? I bought all the stuff to make it, but my plans changed and don’t want the mushrooms to go bad!
You can definitely bake it and freeze it, haven’t tried freezing it before baking..Let me know how it goes!
I made this recipe last night and IT WAS AMAZING!!! I have been craving lasagna forever and this recipe was easy to follow AND delicious. I just made half of the recipe and it was still a very large amount. I will definitely make this again for dinner and maybe even bring it to a party it was so good! I did not add the smoked vegan gouda on top…just went with tomato slices and it was perfect.
That’s awesome Stephanie, so happy you love the lasagna! I make it for every major holiday now by popular demand, you can even prep it all in advance and bake before you serve Xo’s ~ Florentina
Haha, seriously what was up with that? Give me more garlic bread and a good movie lol
Like the others said, this lasagna is AMAZING, I’ll be making it over and over again forever and my kids now eat lentil noodles without protest. Mom wins, thank you for all the fabulous recipes.
I LOVE LOVE this recipe! The sauce is so good – SO GOOD! The Ricotta is something I will use in all kinds of ways. Also, I should say – I am NO CHEF, like I’m real bad in the kitchen and I made this easily. I used artichoke hearts instead of mushrooms and it’s amazing! The tip of nutmeg on the ricotta also really made it amazing. I’ll make this often! THANK YOU!!!
If I was going to freeze some portions after baking, what would be the best way to reheat it? Should I just pop it back in the oven?
Yes, just pop it back in the oven covered with an oven proof lid/ dish or aluminum foil preferably not touching the food!
Ridiculously delicious!!! Hubby and kids devoured it. It came together easily and tasted better than my beloved lasagna recipe. Thank you so much for sharing this with the world.
Woohoo, now this totally made my day, so happy they all loved it ~ Florentina Xo’s
Loved it! Easy to make with a minimum of ingredients, best of all no white flour and soy! Yum! Will post photo on Pinterest.
This was super yummy. The cashew ricotta was perfect. I don’t know what my Sicilian ancestors would say, but I loved it. Thank you!
They would say: finally God sent us Rebecca to show us how it’s really done hahaha Mangia, mangia!
Hi, I am back to say that I used your ricotta recipe but added 1 1/4 cup of water to make it a bit thinner, then added it to GF pasta as an Alfredo sauce and topped it with broccoli. So amazing! Very versatile and no one would think its not real Alfredo sauce. Thank you yet again Florentine for sharing, it’s a must try!
Can you make this in a crock pot? I have an old vegetarian crock pot recipe book back when I was a vegetarian and spinach lasagna was one of the recipes. It was soo good. I’ve been a vegan since 2014 and miss making that recipe. I’d like to use yours, but I would like to make it in the crock pot if I can.
Lisa, I have not made this lasagna in the crockpot so I can’t really recommend. The oven method is so easy and turns out great every time.