theveggieblackboard:

HEALTHY EASY VEGAN ZUCCHINI, LENTIL AND CASHEW CREAM LASAGNA 

This recipe requires a little more prep than I normally go for but it is definitively worth it. I like making a big batch at the weekend, which will pretty much feed me the entire upcoming week.

For this recipe you will need:

• 2 onions
• 1 tin of tomatoes or 2 cups of chopped up fresh ones
• 2 tbsp of tomato paste
• 4 tbsp of mixed Mediterranean herbs
• 1 tsp of mustard
• 1/2 a cup of red wine
• 1 cup of red lentils
• 2 zucchinis
• 9 pasta sheets (leave away for gluten-free option)
• 1/3 cup of raw cashews
• 1/4 cup of soy milk (optional)
• 1/5 cup of olive oil (optional)

The prep for this lasagna goes through several steps. Task number one is most definitely soaking your cashews, try and do this a day beforehand, if your short for time, 2-3 hours should do. Task number two is boiling the lentils, ready for the tomato sauce. It’s enough to cook the lentils for 15-20 minutes as they will be cooked again in the oven. At this point it’s probably a good idea to preheat the oven to about 180 - 200 degrees. Now the real cooking can start.

Chop up the onions and start frying them up in a large saucepan with a tiny bit of oil. After a few minutes, add the tomatoes, tomato paste, herbs, mustard, salt, pepper, red wine and lentils to the pan. Put this on a low heat and let it simmer away, like this flavours are properly soaked up by the sauce.

While the red sauce is bubbling away quietly you can start slicing the zucchini or courgette, whatever you want to call it, into fine slices as shown in the picture. The next move is the cashew cream. Drain the cashews and add to a food processor, together with some olive oil, mustard and soy milk. Blend until smooth. Sounds like a weird combo, I know, but comes out surprisingly creamy and delicious.

Once all of the above is completed it’s time to assemble. Get a deep oven proof dish and start layering. Personally I start with the red sauce, then move onto pasta sheets, then cream and then zucchini and continue like that. I usually finish with a layer of zucchini on top, which goes nice and crispy in the oven.

Throw the dish into the preheated oven for about 30 - 40 minutes and enjoy!