I’m so excited! My vegan lasagna recipe is the culmination of dozens of trials and taste tests and I’m thrilled to share it. Made with three sumptuous layers of classic and spinach basil almond ricotta, homemade tomato sauce, and cashew mozzarella, this dairy-free lasagna is enjoyed by everyone!
I’ve pretty much been working on this recipe since back in 2013 when I shared a kale version. That recipe is great – but this time around I wanted to share a classic, gourmet vegan lasagna without any “twists”, just focusing on perfecting the layers of vegan deliciousness that you see here.
Homemade cheese substitutes in vegan lasagna are an imperative for me. Seeing a picture of lasagna covered in individual strands of Daiya makes me kind of sad. But on the other hand, layers of tomato sauce and veggies with noodles might as well be pasta with less effort! So I tend to go the fancy route with my lasagna and in my opinion it’s totally worthwhile to do so. More time-consuming but still quite easy!
In the past I made my vegan lasagnas with tofu ricotta, and that’s still a great substitute if you want. But almond ricotta has a more satisfying buttery richness that is worth adding if you have the time, so these days I go the no tofu route. And lasagna is the perfect vehicle for delicious gooey stretchy cashew mozzarella so I implore you to give it a try!
A word about variations: I’ve made this into a zucchini lasagna before and it was pretty good! I’ve heard about people using eggplant noodles for lasagna too, haven’t tried that myself yet so I’m not sure. Of course, you can add any vegetable of choice to the filling itself. I recommend chopping vegetables finely, sauteing them and mixing them with the tomato sauce for best results.
For gluten-free vegan lasagna, use your favorite GF lasagna noodles, or make a deconstructed casserole with gluten-free pasta and dollops of the ricottas and sauce.
I have two fresh tomato sauce recipes on my website: 30-minute fresh tomato marinara; and bursted cherry tomato sauce. I’ve made this vegan lasagna multiple times with both of those sauces, and with store-bought sauce too. One of my favorite affordable sauces is Classico Tomato Basil. I buy it at Costco! Or if you’re splurging and don’t care about the price, Rao’s is the beeeest.
Go forth and enjoy this vegan lasagna, homemade from scratch, beloved by the many omnivores and vegans I have fed it to and sure to become a favorite for you too!
Ultimate Vegan Lasagna
Made with decadent layers of homemade spinach and basil almond ricotta, marinara sauce, and gooey cashew mozzarella, this is truly the ultimate vegan lasagna.
Ingredients
- 1 recipe almond ricotta (can be prepared in advance)
- 2 tbsp chickpea flour
- 1 cup fresh spinach leaves
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves
- 3 and 1/2 cups marinara sauce (or other sauce of choice) (can be prepared in advance)
- 1 recipe cashew mozzarella (can be prepared in advance)
- 12 oz dry lasagna noodles (or use oven-ready noodles)
- hemp parmesan (optional, for serving)
Instructions
Prepare the almond ricotta according to recipe instructions in the food processor. Add the chickpea flour to the food processor and blend it in well. Remove half of the mixture from the food processor and set aside. To the remaining half, add the fresh spinach and basil leaves, and pulse until the leaves are broken into small pieces and the mixture is light green. Remove and set aside.
With a few drops of olive oil added to the water, par-boil the lasagna noodles for 4 minutes to prepare them for using in the lasagna. For best results, do this right before assembling the lasagna; drain the noodles but do not rinse them. Set them somewhere in a single layer if possible.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Add 1/2 cup tomato sauce to the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, and spread it out evenly. Layer 4 of the lasagna noodles on top. To this layer, add the white ricotta mixture and spread it into an even layer. On top of the white ricotta add 1 cup of tomato sauce and spread it out evenly.
Repeat by adding 1 more layer of noodles, the green ricotta mixture, and another 1 cup of sauce. Add one last layer of noodles, and on top of the last noodles add the final 1 cup of sauce, and then all of the cashew mozzarella, dolloping it as evenly as you can. Optional: for better browning, spray the top of the lasagna lightly with oil.
Cover the dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover the dish and return to the oven. Turn the oven temperature up to 400 and bake for another 15 minutes, or until the top is starting to lightly brown.
Remove from the oven. Let cool for 20 minutes before slicing and serving, sprinkled with hemp seed parmesan if desired.
Recipe Notes
SAUCE: For other sauce options, use cherry tomato sauce or store-bought sauce.
MAKE AHEAD: The almond ricotta mixture(s) can be made up to a day or two in advance (longer than that, and the fresh basil will start to degrade). The cashew mozzarella can be made in advance, just warm it up a little before using so that it's easier to dollop onto the vegan lasagna. The sauce can be made in advance. Noodles can't be par-boiled in advance but you can use oven-ready noodles and skip that step. If using, the hemp parmesan can also be made in advance.
LEFTOVERS: This lasagna reheats well from both the refrigerator and freezer. Reheat with a little bit of extra sauce if needed to keep it from drying out.
NUTRITION FACTS: Excludes garnishes and uses whole wheat lasagna noodles.
I'm Shannon, the writer and photographer of Yup, it's Vegan! I'm a morning person based in Baltimore, USA. My mission is to create healthy plant-based recipes that anyone would enjoy, using seasonal produce with inspiration from global flavors.
Made with whole wheat lasagna noodles, with 365 brand sauce. Do you think it would work without the chickpea flour next time? I can’t tell what it actually did. The lasagna tastes amazing though. I can’t wait for my leftovers!