I finally managed to write this good recipe for the blog: the light vegan lasagna. I assure you that there is no need to use animal foods or animal-derived products to make a delicious lasagna. And you don’t need a lot of fats either, so here is a dish perfectly in line with the Weight Watchers diet.
In a few simple steps, which you can also prepare in advance, you can make lasagna to lick your lips that your guests will also enjoy. In fact, I will certainly prepare them for Christmas or Carnival.
You can divide this baking dish into 4 super abundant servings that, with some vegetables, act as a single meal. Or you can divide it into 6 servings as a first course followed by a light second course. In short, vegan lasagna is versatile and also easy to prepare, let’s see how…
Here are some other ideal first courses for festive days:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 15 Minutes
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4 or 6
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Healthy
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 12 sheets lasagna (dry egg-free, like De Cecco)
- 10 g nutritional yeast
- to taste basil (fresh)
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil (measuring spoons)
- to taste pepper (optional, if you like)
- 1/3 cup flour
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (delicate flavor. measuring spoons)
- 2 cups ml almond milk (unsweetened)
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg (freshly grated)
- 1 tsp salt
- 3.5 oz soy granules (also known as dehydrated soy)
- to taste spices (Mediterranean dry spices to taste)
- 3/4 cup tomato sauce
- 3/4 cup chopped tomatoes (like Mutti)
- 1 onion
- 1 stalk celery
- 1 carrot
- 1 leaf bay leaf
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil (measuring spoons)
- 2 tbsp red wine
- to taste basil (fresh)
- to taste salt
- to taste pepper (optional, if you like)
- Total Points = 45 WW points
- Points per portion divided in 4 = 11 WW points
- Points per portion divided in 6 = 7 WW points
Tools
- Pot
- Cutting board
- Baking dish
- Hand whisk
- Knife
- Deep pan
- Slotted spoon
- Colander
- Dish towel
- Aluminum foil
Steps
You can prepare the béchamel in advance. The steps to make it can be found here: Light Vegan Béchamel.
You can also prepare the ragù in advance. The steps to make it can be found here: Vegan Soy Ragù.
So, once you have prepared the béchamel and ragù, which can also be done the day before (the ragù will be even better), here’s how to pre-cook the lasagna and then assemble it in the baking dish.
Pre-cooking the dry lasagna is an optional step but I recommend it, especially if, like me, your ragù and béchamel are thick and not very liquid. This way the lasagna will be soft and there will be no need to cook in the oven for a long time.
Boil some water with a little salt in a large baking dish. When it boils, add up to 4 sheets of lasagna, using a slotted spoon to avoid overlapping them too much. Let the sheets boil for 3 or 4 minutes, drain them with the slotted spoon, and place them on a clean dish towel (without fabric softener, mind you, or we’ll have lavender lasagna!) to dry.
When all the lasagna sheets are cooked, you can assemble the lasagna. Put a little béchamel at the bottom of the baking dish and place the first 3 lasagna sheets. Distribute a third of the vegan ragù, then about a fifth of the béchamel (for the last layer, you need to reserve a little more béchamel to cover the entire lasagna well…).
Sprinkle with nutritional yeast and add some torn basil. Repeat layers with more lasagna, ragù, béchamel, nutritional yeast, and basil. On the last layer of lasagna, add the rest of the béchamel, the rest of the nutritional yeast, and the 2 teaspoons of oil. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350°F-390°F for 20 minutes. Then remove the aluminum and bake for another 10 minutes or more until golden.
Remove from oven and let rest for about 15 minutes before serving. Our light vegan lasagna is ready!
What a smell in the kitchen, they are really delicious, look here in the photo how beautiful they are inside:
Serve them with vegetables or simply with seasoned arugula. We, including the Dutchman, loved them, I hope you will enjoy them too! Let me know here in the comments or in my Facebook Club. I’m waiting for you!
Bon appétit
by Giovanna Buono
Preparation and Storage
For convenience, you can prepare everything in advance, even the whole tray of lasagna.
You can prepare both the béchamel and ragù the day before or even a long time before and freeze them. Just make sure to thaw them well before assembling the lasagna.
You can also cook the entire lasagna and freeze it in large slices. Then just put them in a hot oven for at least 20 minutes and check when they are hot again.
If you like, you can also briefly boil some spinach and add them between the layers of lasagna, I like it a lot that way too!
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
What is nutritional yeast?
This recipe also includes nutritional yeast, which is a deactivated yeast rich in vitamin B12. It is widely used in vegan cooking as it gives dishes a cheesy flavor. To learn more, read here: Nutritional Yeast: what it is, how to use it, and why! You can omit it, but in that case, add spices to taste to give more flavor to the final dish.
