Designed to be friendly on the pocket, this quick and easy meat-free recipe incorporates soy “ground beef”, store bought pasta sauces and nutrition packed frozen veggies to create a mouth watering, healthy vegetarian lasagne. The recipe takes about 20 minutes to prepare (excluding baking time) and will satisfy die hard meat eaters and vegetarians alike.
Vegetarian Lasagne Ingredients:
- 9 Whole wheat lasagne noodles
- 312g Vegetarian “Ground Beef” e.g. Yves Traditional or Italian Ground Round
- 700ml Store bought tomato-based Pasta Sauce (e.g. Portobello mushroom flavour)
- 700ml Store bought Alfredo or 4-cheese Pasta Sauce – heated
- 500g California Style Frozen mixed vegetables (broccoli, carrots, cauliflower)
- 1 small red onion - diced
- 1 clove garlic – crushed or finely chopped
- 2 tsps Olive Oil
- 1/2 tsp each of chopped fresh thyme, oregano and rosemary (can use dried)
- 300ml Store bought pre-grated light/low fat cheddar and mozzarella mix
- 2 tsps Parmesan Cheese (fresh or dried)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Recipe Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C)
- Cook lasagne noodles according to package directions
- Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil until tender
- Add veggie “ground beef”, herbs and salt and pepper to taste
- Add frozen vegetables and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes
- Add tomato sauce and parmesan and simmer for another 5 minutes
- Heat Alfredo/4-cheese sauce in separate saucepan
- Spread roughly ? of the tomato sauce in a 3L (13 x 9”) casserole/baking dish. Top with 3 lasagne noodles. Add a layer of roughly ½ the white sauce and top with 3 more noodles. Add another tomato sauce layer and top with 3 noodles. Add a final white sauce layer
- Top with the grated cheddar/mozzarella mix (can also sprinkle with extra parmesan for more flavour)
- Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes until cheese is crispy and brown
Once baked, let the lasagne stand for about 15 minutes before serving. Serve with fresh bread or garlic bread, and a Greek Salad. Serves eight and makes great left overs.
Recipe Alternatives:
This is a recipe that can be easily adapted depending on time and budget. Some alternatives include using fresh vegetables in the tomato sauce, including fried mushrooms, eggplant and zucchini, instead of frozen veggies, or use a mix of fresh and frozen. If time is not a factor, a freshly made béchamel/roux sauce could be used instead of pre-bought alfredo or 4-cheese sauce. Tofu or extra veggies can be used instead of soy “ground beef” or the recipe could be adapted to make a meat version using regular ground beef.
Geraldine Eliot - Originally from Cape Town, South Africa, I now live in Vancouver, Canada (and am still not quite used to the change in temperature). I ...
