The best vegan lasagne recipe
Traditional lasagne is a classic comfort food recipe that’s very easy to veganise. Made without meat and dairy, this is the best vegan lasagne recipe you’ll ever eat.
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The following vegan lasagne recipe takes vegan lasagne-making to a whole new level as we show you how to make your own vegan mozzarella using cashews. If you want to skip this step, there are plenty of vegan cheese alternatives you can buy in supermarkets that will allow you to finish the dish with ready-made vegan cheese.
Just make sure you opt for a hard vegan cheese such as vegan parmesan or mozzarella, or you could make it slightly less Italian with a layer of grated vegan cheddar. Whatever you choose, just go for a cheese that will melt nicely in the oven.
What is vegan lasagne made of?
Whether you choose to spell it lasagne or lasagna, traditional lasagne is a classic comfort food recipe. And the great news is, it’s very easy to veganise.
A classic vegan lasagne consists of four different layers: vegan béchamel sauce (white sauce), meat-free tomato sauce, egg-free lasagne sheets and a final layer of vegan cheese.
Thin layers of béchamel, meat-free tomato sauce and lasagne sheets are stacked on top of each other to create a thick wedge of pasta goodness. The amount of layers you end up with will depend on the depth of your cooking dish, but try for at least two or three layers of pasta.
If your lasagne tends to collapse when you cut it into pieces, try reducing the tomato sauce a little further next time so it isn’t quite as runny when you put it into the dish.
Are lasagne sheets vegan?
Yes and no. When we’re asked the question ‘Is pasta vegan?’, the usual answer is that you’re pretty safe with dried pasta, but fresh pasta tends to contain eggs.
For some reason, the exception to the rule is lasagne sheets. Many dried lasagne sheets do contain eggs, so you really need to check the box when you’re buying your sheets.
Most of the time you won’t need to pre-cook the lasagne sheets, you can just add them to your layers in their dried form, but again, it’s worth double checking the box.
What can I use instead of lasagne sheets?
If you have a gluten allergy, or you’re trying to avoid pasta, it’s become quite popular to substitute the pasta layer with thin slices of courgette instead.
Another great alternative is aubergine. Again, just layer thin slices between the white sauce and meat-free layers and the vegetable will cook alongside the rest of the ingredients in the oven.
Variations on the classic vegan lasagne recipe
If you’re not a fan of vegan meat alternatives, you could swap the vegan mince out and use tinned lentils instead.
Mushrooms that have been chopped up finely also work well instead of vegan mince.
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 1
Rating:
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 1
Ingredients
Method
Ingredients
(Servings: 1)
- Bolognese Sauce:
- 1 1 onion
- 1 1 garlic clove
- 1 1 carrot
- 1 1 stalk of celery
- 50 50 g sundried tomatoes (in oil)
- 2 2 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar (or a splash of red wine)
- 1 1 Tbsp sugar
- 2 2 Tbsp fresh basil (finely chopped)
- 1 1 Tbsp fresh thyme
- 1 1 Tbsp dried oregano
- 1 1 bay leaf
- 1 1 clove
- 300 300 ml vegetable stock
- 3 3 chopped tomatoes (400g each)
- 250 250 g vegan minced “meat”
- Salt, to taste
- Pepper, to taste
- Béchamel Sauce:
- 50 50 g vegan butter
- 50 50 g flour
- 500 500 ml oat milk
- 0.5 0.5 tsp ground nutmeg
- Salt, to taste
- Pepper, to taste
- Vegan Mozzarella Cheese:
- 140 140 g cashews (soaked for min 3 hours)
- 260 260 ml water
- 2 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
- 1 1 lemon (juice)
- 2 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 6 6 Tbsp tapioca starch (or corn starch)
- Salt, to taste
- 250 250 g vegan lasagne sheets
Method
- Soak the cashews for the vegan mozzarella cheese in water for at least 3 hours or overnight.
- Prepare the Bolognese sauce: Finely chop the onion, garlic and fresh herbs. Cut the carrot, celery and sundried tomatoes into small cubes.
- Heat some olive oil in a large pot, and fry the onions for 3 minutes. Add the garlic, carrot, celery and sundried tomatoes, and fry for 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste, herbs and spices. Deglaze everything with the balsamic vinegar, the chopped tomatoes and vegetable stock (use the vegetable stock to rinse the tomato tins). Let simmer for at least 30 minutes.
- In a separate pan, fry the mock minced “meat” until crispy and add to the Bolognese sauce. Season to perfection with salt and pepper. Save for later.
- While the Bolognese sauce is simmering, make the Béchamel sauce. Start by making a roux. Therefore, melt the butter on low heat in a pan. Once melted, add the flour while stirring, and fry for 2 minutes. Gradually pour in the oat milk and keep stirring with a whisk. Bring to a boil and turn of the heat. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Save for later as well.
- At this point, you can preheat the oven to 200°C.
- Add some Bolognese sauce on the base of an oven-proof form. Add one layer of lasagne sheets, add Bolognese sauce and Béchamel sauce, and top again with a layer of lasagne sheets. Repeat until all the sauce has been used. Finish with a layer of Bolognese sauce.
- For the vegan mozzarella cheese, put the soaked cashews in a food processor together with 260 ml of cold water, yeast flakes, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, tapioca/corn starch and a generous pinch of salt. Mix until smooth. Transfer the mixture to a saucepan, and heat on low heat while stirring all the time until it thickens. Pour on top of the lasagne while it is still hot. (Alternatively, you can also use vegan parmesan cheese to top the lasagne rather than making the vegan mozzarella.)
- Bake for 30-40 minutes until the pasta is cooked through (You can cover it with aluminium foil after 25 minutes if it gets to brown on top). Enjoy!
Chef’s tip
Forgotten to soak your cashews? Boil them in water for 10-15 minutes until soft instead.
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