Zucchini Lasagna That Is Also A Leftover Favorite!
 Zucchini Lasagna That Is EASY To Make!
Who loves leftover lasagna? If you are feeling lazy today, yet still hungry for homemade whole food goodness, this zucchini lasagna is for you. On this episode of #LunchBreakLive Chef, Tracy Childs of Tracy’s REAL Foods & Veg-Appeal shows us how easy it is to make a delicious homecooked, healthy vegan meal that is sure to be a family favorite. This go-to recipe for vegan lasagna is a great crowd-pleaser or a wonderful & easy meal just for you! Tracy, a Food For Life instructor with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, brings us whole food plant-based easy cooking once again. Let’s see how it’s done…
A Whole Food Plant-Based Chef Who Loves To Educate Others
Tracy is co-founder, chef, and director of Tracy’s Real Foods a whole -foods, plant-based company that ships healthy goodies nationwide. She’s a certified Nutritional Consultant and holds a Certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition from eCornell. Tracy has also taught nutrition and cooking for over a decade as a Food for Life Instructor, certified with the Physician’s Committee for Responsible Medicine. As the Founder and Director of Veg-Appeal in San Diego, she offers educational cooking classes, corporate wellness, individual & cooking lessons, store tours, & personal health coaching. Tracy is also the Founder and Director of PlantDiego, a San Diego-based nonprofit organization inspired by the movie PlantPure Nation to educate and support people in living a healthy, whole-food, plant-based lifestyle. In addition, Tracy is a cookbook author! She contributed over 100 recipes for the book — Handbook to Higher Health Consciousness.Â
Lazy Days Calls For Lazy Zucchini Lasagna
I love easy recipes. I don’t like long complicated ingredients lists and long cooking times. I guess when I am hungry I am hungry and don’t have the patience to cook in-depth recipes. So this zucchini lasagna sounds pretty perfect for my lazy cooking personality. Haha. It even comes with homemade tofu ricotta which sounds and looks incredible. What’s lasagna without ricotta! And don’t forget the homemade vegan nut parmesan. Lasagna is generally known to be a family favorite, so this dish is sure to wow the whole table at lunch or dinner. And it makes for great leftovers! So go ahead and give it a try. The recipe is below.
Lazy Zucchini Lasagna
Ingredients
- 10 ounces frozen chopped spinach thawed and drained (optional)
- 1 recipe Tofu Ricotta recipe below
- 2 large jars pasta sauce of your choice
- 8 ounces lasagna noodles uncooked - you might not use all
- 1-2 zucchini sliced thinly (a mandolin is helpful for this)
- 1 large carrot shredded (optional)
- Nut Parmesan Garnish see recipe below
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 F.
- If using, stir the chopped, drained & thawed spinach into the ricotta.
- Spread about ½ cup of the sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish and place a layer of 4 lasagna noodles
- Spread ½ of the tofu mix on top of the noodles.
- Follow with a layer of zucchini slices or shredded carrots if using.
- Layer in a coating of the sauce.
- Layer in 4 more noodles.
- Follow with the rest of the tofu mixture then sliced zucchini if you used carrots.
- Layer in 4 more noodles.
- Cover with PLENTY of sauce!
- Cover the dish TIGHTLY with foil.
- Bake at 375 F for about 1 hour, test the top noodles for tenderness. Add more sauce if necessary (and return to oven for a few minutes).
- Allow it to cool for a few minutes before serving with homemade Nut Parmesan.
Tofu Ricotta
Ingredients
- 1 package 14-16 ounces firm tofu
- 1/4 cup 60 ml nondairy milk, or as needed (depends on tofu water content which varies between brands)
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder or 2 garlic cloves
- Juice from 1/2 lemon about 1-2 tablespoons
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
- ½ - 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
Instructions
- Blend tofu, garlic, lemon juice and salt in a food processor or blender until smooth. Add nondairy milk just as needed to get a smooth consistency.
- Stir or pulse in the chopped basil.
Nut Parmesan
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds or other nut/seed of choice (or a mix)
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes unfortified
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Add all ingredients and blend to grind.
- Remove to a container and store in the refrigerator.
Thanks For Stopping By!
Thank you for joining us for this zucchini lasagna party for the lazier chef! I am so looking forward to making this dish, seems like a healthy “comfort food” choice, and so simple to make. If you are looking for other easy vegan recipes to try, be sure to jump over to the #LunchBreakLIVE page, we have a ton of recipes to choose from. Until next time…keep cookin’!
What's Your Reaction?
This recipe is unbelievably good and so easy. I have a backyard full of most of the ingredients I need. Fabulous recipe and I’ve only made it once and already one of my favorites. I didn’t have lasagna noodles and subbed small shells that I had in the cupboard and they worked really well. Can’t wait to make this again.