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Zucchini and Tomato Vegan Lasagna with Basil Pistachio Pesto

Whenever I have company, I love making a hearty dinner with familiar flavors.

Today, I made this fresh and flavorful zucchini and tomato vegan lasagna.

It was inspired by a raw lasagna recipe I came across. The zucchini adds a nice crunch with hardly any calories, no cholesterol and no fat. So pile on that zucchini.

Cheese gives lasagna a salty flavor so I replaced that with this pistachio pesto.

At any rate, it was a big hit with the family and no one missed the cheese. Feel free to add some vegan cheese on top but most vegan cheeses have a lot of fat and oil. Also, double check the label for casein.

Hope you enjoy this vegan lasagna as much as we did. If you love vegan lasagna as much as I do, you might enjoy this Vegan Manicotti with Spinach Ricotta and my No Bake Vegan Lasagna with Ricotta.

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Ordinary Vegan Zucchini and Tomato Lasagne with Basil Pistachio Pesto

 

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Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

55 mins

 

Author: Ordinary Vegan

Recipe type: Main

Cuisine: Italian Inspired

Serves: 4

Ingredients

Lemon-Pignoli “Ricotta”

• 2 cups raw pignoli nuts, soaked in water for one hour
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (available in health food stores or Whole Foods)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt

Tomato Sauce

• 2 cups good-quality sun-dried tomatoes (dry-packed), soaked in water for at least 2 hours
• 1 medium ripe tomato, diced
• ¼ small onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 teaspoons maple syrup
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• Pinch hot pepper flakes

Basil-Pistachio Pesto

• 2 cups packed basil leaves
• ½ cup raw pistachios
• 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
• pinch freshly ground black pepper

Lasagna

• 3 medium zucchini, ends trimmed and peeled
• 3 medium green zebra tomatoes (or other heirloom variety)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 9 small sheets whole-wheat lasagna (approximately 9 inches length) No-boil lasagna or pre-cooked lasagna noodles pliable but still strong
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh oregano
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• Garnish: whole basil leaves

Instructions

Lemon-Pignoli “Ricotta”

1. Place the pignoli, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, and salt in a food processor, and pulse a few times, until thoroughly combined. Gradually add 6 tablespoons water, and pulse until the texture becomes fluffy, like ricotta. Place in a bowl, cover with pastic wrap and set aside.

Tomato Sauce

1. Place all ingredients in a blender, and process until smooth.

Basil-Pistachio Pesto

1. Place all ingredients in a blender, and process until smooth.

Lasagna

1. Using a mandoline or vegetable peeler, shave zucchini lengthwise into very thin slices, then cut in half crosswise. Cut the tomatoes in half, and each half into thin slices. Line the bottom of a 9 by 9 inch baking dish with three sheets of lasagna covering bottom of baking dish. Cover with ⅓ of the tomato sauce. Cover with two layers of zucchini slices and one layer of sliced tomato. Top with small dollops of ricotta and pesto, using ⅓ of each. Layer three more sheets of lasagna covering top. Top with another ⅓ of the tomato sauce. Sprinkle with ½ of oregano and thyme leaves. Cover with two layers of zucchini slices and one layer of sliced tomato. Top with small dollops of ricotta and pesto, using ⅓ of each. Top with other half of thyme and oregano. Layer three more sheets of lasagna covering top. Top with remaining tomato sauce. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes

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