Vegan Lasagne

Who doesn't like lasagne? Ahh those wonderful Italians, who knows what they ate before love apples were bought back from the new world. This one is very similar to ones I grew up eating, so it is very non vegan friendly. It's also relatively easy, and makes enough so that some can be frozen for future meals. You will need a baking tray to put the lasagne in, and a large pot to cook the sauce

Ingredients

600 grams Butternut pumpkin (Diced. Also called Butternut Squash)
1 package Lasagne sheet (About 9-10 sheets or enough for 3 layers)
2 cans Roma tomato (Chopped)
1 can Tomato paste
1⁄3 cup Textured vegetable protein (Prepare according to package. TVP is also called Soya Mince.)
2 cups Mushrooms (Chopped roughly)
1 Carrot (Large, diced)
1 Onion (Diced)
1 Capsicum (Red, diced. Also called Red Pepper)
2 cloves Garlic (Crushed or finely chopped)
2 tablespoons Mixed herbs (Basil and oregano the main ones we want)
2 tablespoons Olive oil (If you have any oil left over from sundried tomato jars that is the best)
1 cup Soy milk (Optional, see recipe)
1⁄2 cup Plain flour (Optional, see recipe)
1 cup Soy cheese (Optional, see recipe)
1⁄4 teaspoon Nutmeg (Optional)

Info

Yield
6 Servings
Preparation time
1 hour
Cooking time
30 minutes
Total time
1 hour, 30 minutes

Instructions

  1. Place pumpkin in a hot steamer, or in boiling water
  2. Put 1 1/2 Tablespoons of oil in a large pan, then onions
  3. Stir for a moment, then add in Capsicum and garlic.
  4. Cook till onion and capsicum slightly soft
  5. Add mushrooms and TVP, stir through till hot
  6. Add the carrots and stir through till hot
  7. Add cans of tomatoes and stir through
  8. Once Pumpkin is slightly soft, drain if necessary and add
  9. Add tomato paste and herbs, stirring into mash some of the pumpkin and allow to cook for 5 minutes
  10. Make sure mixture doesn't dry, and add 1/3 cup water if needed
  11. Once sauce is prepared, place a thin later of it on the base of the Lasagne Pan
  12.  Place a layer of lasagne sheets on this, then another tickers layer of pasta etc, until you have used up both, making sure you also have a layer of sauce on top. (Try to get an idea of how many layers of pasta you will have by the number of sheets you have in the bottom row)

Now for the sauce to put on top. You can just 1 Cup of vegan cheese on top, or you could make a white sauce which is more fun.

White Sauce

  1. In the pan on low heat, place last 1/2 Tablespoon of oil, then the flour and nutmeg
  2.  Slowly stir in the soy milk, crushing any lumps that appear with your trusty wooden spoon
  3. If you have any vegan cheese a small amount, say 1/2 Cup, will make the sauce even better
  4. Once ingredients are combined nicely and there are no lumps in it, pour on top of Lasagne

Put Sauce on top of Lasagne, and then place in over on 350 Degrees for 20 Minutes (or 30 Minutes if you like overcooked lasagne like some crazy people).

Notes

The pumpkin isn't essential, actually, nothing is except the topping, tomato sauce and lasagne sheets, so experiment.