Lasagna (with Teese)

Dinner 4/10

Lasagna
(spinach, mushroom, tofu ricotta, tomato sauce, teese soy cheese)

We bought another 6 lbs. (!) of Teese this week, so Lasagna was in order

Lasagna

Spinach

1 tbs. olive oil
12 oz. (local) spinach, wilted
1 tsp. tamari
pepper to taste

In a large pan or wok, heat the oil to medium and (carefully) add the rinsed spinach with tongs (watch the splatter). Continually turn the spinach until it begins to wilt. Add the pepper. When the spinach has released most of its liquid, add the tamari and toss to incorporate. Set aside on a plate.

Mushrooms

1 tbs. olive oil
10 oz. button mushrooms, sliced thinly
1 tsp. tamari
pepper to taste

In the same pan, add the additional olive oil and saute the mushrooms for 6-8 minutes until they too have given up most of their liquid. Add the tamari and pepper and toss to incorporate for 1 minute. Set aside on a separate plate.

Tomato Sauce

1 tbs. olive oil,
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 medium onion, sliced thinly
1 tbs. smoked paprika,
1 tbs. nutritional yeast
1 tbs. parsley
1 tbs. oregano
salt and pepper, to taste
15oz. (fire-roasted) whole tomatoes

In the same pan as the mushrooms and spinach, add the additional olive oil and saute the onions. Season with salt, pepper, smoked paprika and herbs and cook until golden. Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute. Add the tomatoes, breaking them up as best as you can (a potato masher works wonders here). Bring the sauce to a boil and then simmer for 10-12 minutes, until thickened. Check for seasoning.

Tofu Ricotta

16 oz. firm tofu, crumbled
2 tbs. parsley, chopped
2 tbs. nutritional yeast,
1/2 cup soy sour creme,
1/4 cup pine nuts
salt and pepper, to taste

While the tomato sauce is simmering, you can make the ricotta. In a large bowl, crumble the tofu with your fingers into small pieces. Add the parsely, nooch, soy sour creme, pine nuts, salt and pepper. Mix (with your hands) to incorporate -- you can bust out the immersion blender and/or just chuck the whole thing in the vita mix and puree. It should be fairly thick, but spreadable.

16 oz. Teese soy cheese, shredded or cut into 32 thin medallions
12 lasagna noodles, cooked according to package instructions.

Assembly

In a 9x9 oven-proof pan, spread 2 tbs. of tomato sauce on the bottom of pan. Lay four lasagna noodles side by side over the sauce. Add about half of the teese/mushrooms/spinach/ricotta/tomato sauce in whatever order you like. Add another four lasagna noodles perpendicular to the first layer and add the remaining of the teese/mushrooms/spinach/ricotta/tomato sauce. Add the final four lasagna noodles and top with a little bit of the tomato sauce and Teese if you have any left.

Bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for at least 10 minutes before trying to cut. With a serrated knife, cut the lasagna into nine 3"x3" squares.

And as you can tell from the bottom left corner, the teese does, in fact, melt quite well, even at a lower temp...

Tags: teese, soy cheese, tofu, spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, lasagna, pine nuts, nutritional yeast, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666