This is probably the easiest vegan lasagna you’ll ever make and one of the most delicious! No need to pre-cook the noodles – they soften as it bakes.
Last night I had the pleasure of having dinner with a group of people taking a Civil Rights Tour through the South. The menu for the night was barbecued pork sandwiches and pork-and-beans, the idea being to give them a little taste of local cuisine (which revolves around pork, apparently).
The only problem: Several of the 30 participants were vegetarian. When the planners of the dinner realized this, a call went out for vegan dishes, and I was happy to oblige with my potluck standard, vegan lasagna.
I’ve been making this recipe for years, and I can’t bring myself to change it. I keep thinking I should do something to fancy it up, but it’s my daughter’s all-time favorite food, so I never want to risk ruining a batch. (This is a kid who has written several essays this year about her love for lasagna; her hero is Garfield the cat.)
The Easiest Vegan Lasagna
Recipes for vegan lasagna abound, and I’m sure you can find fancier, richer tasting versions, but for sheer easiness of preparation and basic yumminess, this one can’t be beat. You don’t need to pre-cook the lasagna noodles, and you can make it super-easy by using jarred spaghetti sauce.
Check out just how easy it is in my short video.
You can make this as light or decadent as you want. Your choice of spaghetti sauce will determine how much fat it has. (For the lowest-fat version, use a sauce with no oil added; Whole Foods has one.)
For some special occasions, I sprinkle the lasagna with vegan cheese during the last 5 minutes of cooking. This option is, of course, not fat-free, but it really helps “sell” it to any omnivores you happen to be feeding.
But the plain, uncheesified lasagna seemed to be a hit at last night’s dinner. The pan returned home empty (and not just because E. ate 4 pieces!) I regret that I never got the opportunity to find out who the vegetarians in the group were, but it felt good just to know that they were there.
Easy Vegan Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms sliced
- 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 24-oz jars spaghetti sauce or your favorite pasta sauce
- 9 uncooked lasagna noodles (regular lasagna noodles NOT no-boil noodles)
- Vegan Parmesan such as my almond parm, optional
- Sliced black olives optional
Filling:
- 10 ounces frozen chopped spinach thawed and drained
- 1 pound firm or extra-firm tofu not silken!
- 1 teaspoon salt optional
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast adds a cheesy taste
- 1 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon basil
- 1/2 teaspoon rosemary crushed
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Sauté the mushrooms and garlic over medium heat in the 2 tbsp. water until tender; cover between stirring to keep them from drying out. Remove from heat and add the spaghetti sauce.
- Place the tofu and thawed spinach in the food processor and process briefly. Add the remaining filling ingredients to the processor and blend until smooth. (You may do this without a food processor by using a potato masher on the tofu.)
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Spread half of the sauce in the bottom of a 9Ă—12-inch pan. Place a layer of noodles over the sauce, using three dry noodles and leaving a little space in between them. Spread half of the tofu mixture on the noodles (you can drop it by spoonfuls and then spread it or hold each noodle in the palm of your hand and spread the tofu on it before placing it in the pan). Cover with another layer of 3 noodles and then spread the remaining tofu mixture over them. Top with a final layer of noodles, and pour the remaining sauce over this.
- Cover the dish tightly with foil, and bake for 30 minutes. Then, remove the foil and bake for another 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with vegan Parmesan or cheese and sliced black olives if you want. The lasagna will cut better if you allow it to cool for 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutritional info is approximate.
Please share:
Sameul
Quick question, can collard greens or kale be swapped out for the spinach, anyone know or has tried? Thank you..
SusanV
I would cook collards first (and maybe even kale) but other than that, I think they’d be fine.
elle
Can you use whole wheat noodles? Would you have to precook them first?
SusanV
You can use whole wheat noodlesand I think they’ll be fine uncooked. I just happen to be trying it this afternoon, and I’ll let you know if I’m wrong!
elle
Thank I appreciate that. I love your blog and even though I’m just a vegetarian and not a vegan I love your recipes. I especially liked your baked mac and cheese recipe.
elle
how did the lasgna with the whole wheat noodles turn out? did you have to cook the lasagna longer?
TRACEY PRETEAU
I made this recipe over the weekend and it was amazing. I am transitioning to becoming Vegan and was happy to find a recipe I actually love. I only had extra firm tofu at home. The lasagna still turn out great!!
Kristen
I made this again tonight (simultaneously along with the black bean pineapple chili–I was in the mood to cook!) and it’s one of my favorites too. The hard copy I printed some time ago has “I don’t miss the cheese ONE IOTA!!!” written on it. 🙂
Cathi
My birthday is Sunday and this is what we’re eating. Made it before and it is wonderful.
Do you think I can assemble it the night before and the bake the next day?
Thx from Cathi
SusanV
Yep, that will work just fine. Have a happy birthday!
Shamberly
Pasta noodles are usually made with egg, so the recipe isn’t completely vegan, unless you are using special noodles. But it sounds great otherwise!
SusanV
Dried lasagna noodles sold in the U.S. are completely egg-free and vegan. No need for special noodles.
bonnie
For the past couple of years, a friend has been making vegan lasagna for me at Thanksgiving but I have yet to get the recipe. I felt like trying something new today, so I tried my hand at making this recipe – my first ever attempt at lasagna. I have to say, it was much easier to make than I anticipated. I will certainly be making it again and expect that it will be a go-to recipe for dinner parties. Thanks for another home run, Susan!
Sandy
I have been vegan for about 2 months. Lasagna is one of my families favorite dishes. I tried this recipe as first experiment. They loved it. I even took some to my co-workers that think i’m crazy. How can you not eat meat and how can you make lasagna without cheese or meat……..We I made believer’s out of them. They said if all Vegan food was this good, they might be able to do this. Thanks so much. You have created a wonderful dish. You have made this transition wonderful.
Thank you
Sandy
SusanV
Wow, Sandy, that’s fantastic! I’m glad it was a hit and happy to help with your transition. Thanks for writing!
Julia
You did it again! I prepared this recipe multiplied by 4! for our Fellowship hour at church (fasting from meat and dairy during Advent). It was soooo easy, practical and DELICIOUS (Definitely a crowd pleaser) that many were asking for the recipe. Of course I referred them to your website. Now, i just got the ingredients for the lemon pie (for my hubby).THANK YOU Susan! I enjoy your recipies and blog.
Cyndie
Hi Susan,
This looks wonderful! I have non-vegan Guests coming for dinner tomorrow and this is what I’m going to serve. I have never seen low-fat tofu. All I have right now is silken. How big a deal is it if I use the silken? If it will ruin it, I will get out and look….but I just wondered if it mattered a lot.
Cyndie
Susan Voisin
I haven’t made it with silken, so I can only guess that it might be more creamy-liquidy and not as ricotta-like as regular tofu. Since you have guests coming, I recommend looking for the regular tofu–wouldn’t want to mess up your dinner!
CajunLady
Absolutely delicious! My husband went back for seconds and thirds! Two months ago after my husband had quadruple bypass surgery, his cardiologist referred us to Dr. Esselstyn’s diet. None of the recipes I prepared were tasty until I stumbled upon your website. Finally, recipes for the people who live in the South. Thank you so much for making my life so much easier and giving us good ole Southern food minus the fat.
terri
Wow! This tastes amazing! Thank you. I made it for tomorrows dinner but I had to test it first 🙂 I cannot wait to serve this to my husband tomorrow. So yummy!!! followed the recipe but used ww noodles uncooked. worked like a charm. Also used the potato masher trick. My 4 year old did it. I’m thrilled.
Cyndie
I made this today for my non-vegan family members. It was fabulous!! My oldest daughter, who had been making doubting comments all day, loved it. She kept saying, ” I can’t believe this is vegan, it’s so good”. Thanks, Susan! A big hit.
Cyndie
BTW, I did use the silken tofu. I added a couple of extra TB of nutritional yeast to make up for the extra moisture. It worked great. This is the best lasagna I have ever had!
Carolyn Holme
This is so good! Always have good success with your recipes, yours is the first site I search. This still has to be my all time favorite!
Gigi
I made this yesterday for a potluck at hubby’s work. I made some minor changes, such as using 19 oz of tofu (Trader Joe’s sells packages in 14 oz or 19 oz), 1 lb of frozen spinach, added a chopped onion to the mushrooms, and used 2 – 28 oz jars of pasta sauce (Arribiatta from TJ’s – my fav!). The directions were a little unclear, so I ended up combining the mushrooms with the tofu and spinach. I was a little nervous about not pre-cooking the noodles, but a bunch of my chef friends assured me it would work. I was amazed at how EZ this recipe was! And I was amazed at how delicious it was, too. I was never a fan of “normal” meat-ladden lasagna – too much greasy cheese and meat! Gives me a belly ache just thinking about it! This was perfect! I can’t wait to make it again. Next time I want to add sliced portabello mushrooms, either grilled or marinated to soften. Oh, and all the meat-loving workers at hubby’s work gobbled up the lasagna! Two thumbs up!
Paul
Good recipe…was a little thin. If I could do it again I’d do it in an 8×8 or 9×9 and make it a deeper dish. I used kalamata instead of black olives and thyme instead of basil. Killer!
Paul
Jenny
If I am going to use gluten free lasagana noodles, do you know if they should also be used uncooked?
Susan Voisin
Yes, they should be uncooked, too. Hope you enjoy!
Jenny
This was awesome and a big hit with my dinner guests. Thanks for being such a wonderful resource!! I started being 100% vegan 22 days ago and sites like yours have been invaluable.
trijbits
I made this for the first time yesterday and will be making it regularly. Amazingly tasty and satisfying! Thank you!
As many others have commented, yours is always the first site I check when searching for a recipe.
Aspiring vegan since 8-30-2011
Andrea Pemberton
Yum. Made for the second or third time tonight. Had accidentally purchased silken tofu, and ended up using it despite the warning not to….definitely prefer with the firm tofu, but worked perfectly well w/silken, just not quite as dense. Still perfectly delicious.
John
Made this tonight … it’s awesome! Easy and delicious — your daughter recognizes great food and I do too. Thanks for sharing!
Maria Lewis
My family loved this too!
Thank you so much for finding a way to put my ancestral cuisine back on my table. Even the cheese-lovers in my family found this delicious. And it is in fact EASY. Way easier than what my mom taught me to do.
Also wanted to thank you in general for the “Family Favorites” section of your blog. Most of your family favorites have turned out to be my family favorites as well. My daughter is twelve years old, and seems to have a lot in common with E!
Christina
I CANNOT believe how good this is!!!!! I did not change the recipe at all and it was fantastic! Everything I’ve made from your website has been wonderful. Thank you so much for the time and work you put into your website. It has made my transition to vegan effortless! AND this was so easy to make! In fact, I’m going to make it again this week!
Philippa Sonnichsen
Susan,
I made this recipe for dinner last night, and we had two unexpected, omnivorous guests. One of them grew up on his Sicilian’s grandmother’s cooking, so I was a bit nervous as I set down a vegan version of lasagna. However, he raved about it and wanted the recipe! Kudos to you! We all thought it was delicious too, and it’s so easy to make. Thanks for sharing your family’s favorite recipes!
Bridget
Hi Susan,
I LOVE your recipes – thank you. I’ve been following you a long time. I know this is an old recipe (and one of my FAVS!) but I have a question. When you prepare this by replacing the noodles w/ zucchini – do you change anything? I didn’t see any info about it below.
Susan Voisin
I just use one jar of spaghetti sauce when using zucchini or eggplant instead of pasta; otherwise, it’ll be too runny. Check out this recipe as an example: http://fatfreevegan.com/blog/2010/02/23/no-pasta-eggplant-lasagna/
Kelly Michele
Just ate this fresh out of the oven – ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS! 🙂 i have been eating a diet free from animal meat and dairy for about 6 months and am thrilled to have found such an amazing recipe for lasagna! thank you!
suzgrant
Made this tonight. Delicious! And by far the easiest Lasagna I have ever made.