Recipe and photo @mindfullbymadeline
I’ve been an enormous lasagna fan my whole life, but I always feel pretty icky after eating a traditional lasagna. My stomach hurts, and I end up feeling sluggish and unproductive. That’s why I’m constantly on the hunt for healthier (but still delicious) lasagna alternatives. And this one gets a gold star. Instead of loads of dairy cheese, this dish is comprised of pureed butternut squash, cashews, nutritional yeast, and other wholesome ingredients. I promise you will feel energized and satiated after eating this healthier take on lasagna!
Servings: 9
Sauce:
1 small butternut squash (2 cups puréed)
5 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
1 1⁄4 cup raw cashews, soaked
3 T lemon juice
1 tsp sea salt
1⁄2 tsp cayenne
2 T Nutritional Yeast
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 1⁄2 cups pasta water (plus more as needed to blend)
1 Package of Jovial gluten free lasagna noodles
1 T salt
1 T olive oil
Filling:
1 1⁄2 T olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
6 cups mushrooms, rough chopped
6 cups kale, finely chopped
1 tsp each sea salt and black pepper
3 T fresh thyme
3 T fresh basil
Herbamare to taste
Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to boil. While heating, chop and deseed your squash. Let squash boil until fork tender, then strain.
While the squash is cooking, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the lasagna noodles in the salted water according to package instructions or until al dente. Then drain, set aside, and rub with olive oil to keep noodles from sticking together.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add olive oil and onion. Sauté until softened, then add the mushrooms. Sauté until lightly browned. Then add kale, salt, pepper, basil and thyme. Sauté until all is reduced and tender
Once the squash is slightly cooled, place into a high speed blender. Add garlic cloves, cashews (drained), lemon juice, salt, cayenne, nutritional yeast, turmeric and pasta water and blend until smooth, adding more water and scraping down the sides of the blender as needed. It should be thick and creamy. Taste and adjust as needed, adding more salt to bring out flavors or nutritional yeast for extra cheesiness.
Heat oven to 350 F
Assemble the lasagna in a 9 x 9 (or similar size) glass or ceramic baking dish.
Add 1⁄2 C sauce to the bottom of the pan and spread it evenly. Then add a layer of noodles, then a layer of about 1/3 of the filling. Repeat with two more layers of sauce, noodles, and filling. Then finish with a layer of noodles and the remaining sauce as the top layer (it should be a thicker layer fully coating the noodles). Bake lasagna at 350 F for 35 minutes or until the top layer is slightly dry and a little darker in color.
Carefully remove from the oven and let cool 10 minutes before serving. Cut into large squares, and enjoy! Serve on a bed of roasted kale, and top with fresh thyme and basil for extra greens!
