Amazing vegan lasagna doesn’t need to be complicated. This no-fuss lasagna recipe is pure comfort food with a flavorful meatless sauce, vegan ricotta, noodles, and fresh spinach.
So why am I sharing another lasagna recipe with you? Well, even though I love our original vegan lasagna and lasagna roll-ups already on the blog, I felt the blog was missing a no fuss, classic lasagna that anyone can make. It’s so easy, you guys!
Lasagna Ingredients
The ingredients for my take on this simple, mostly-homemade lasagna aren’t complicated at all! Just look at what we are using:
Vegan Beef — Classic lasagna usually calls for ground meat (like beef), but Gardein Beefless Ground is our ground “beef” of choice. It’s not only certified vegan, but also gluten-free, contains less fat than regular ground beef and still loaded with protein and flavor.
Sauce — Feel free to use homemade sauce here, but we typically like to use our favorite store-bought sauce and just doctor it up. Adding in extra veggies like diced onions, peppers & carrots, then sprinkling in extra red chili pepper & basil simply kicks it up a notch, making it extra rich in flavor.
Spinach— Not necessary but so tasty, plus I like to add in a few layers of fresh spinach for an extra boost of vitamins!
Vegan Cheese — We opt for three dairy-free cheeses in this lasagna. Homemade vegan ricotta cheese makes up our creamy layers (you can sub with regular ricotta if dairy doesn’t bother you), and then we follow up with lots of vegan mozzarella and parm.
Noodles — If short on time, you can choose no-boil noodles since they allow you to skip the boiling step. Banza is our fav since it’s made from chickpeas which is an extra boost of protein and fiber! If you prefer the boil-first noodles, just make sure to cook them until they’re very al dente; about two minutes before the amount of time on the box.
How to Make This No Fuss Lasagna
From start to finish, lasagna takes a little over an hour. That includes prepping, assembly, and baking.
The full printable recipe is below, here’s a quick summary of the process:
- Make the “meat” sauce. Brown the beefless ground first to give it extra crispy texture. Then add in diced onions and veggies. After the veggies are soft, I add the sauce and spices then simmer while the oven is heating.
- Make the ricotta mixture. Quick Vegan Tofu Ricotta can be used anywhere traditional ricotta is called for. Ours is made by blending together tofu, lemon juice, garlic, nutritional yeast, olive oil and some spices.
- Assemble the lasagna! Spread about a cup of meat sauce into pan. Add a layer of noodles. Top the noodles with 1/3 of the ricotta and cheeses. Repeat the layers, ending with a layer of noodles, and any little bit of sauce you have left & cheese.
- Bake the lasagna. Cover and bake for 40 minutes, and then remove foil and bake another 5-10 minutes, until bubbly.
Although you’ll be ready to dig in immediately, let the lasagna sit for at least 15 minutes once removed from the oven. This is what keeps it from becoming runny and helps it to keep its shape when cutting into squares.
Make Ahead Tips
Lasagna is the perfect make-ahead meal. Simply assemble the lasagna ahead of time then refrigerate up to 2 days.
Baked Lasagna Freezes well
Lasagna is one of the best meals to make ahead and freeze. I like to make two pans of this no fuss lasagna recipe and save one for another day. You can either divide the already baked lasagna into individual portions and pack it in freezer safe containers, or freeze the whole pan.
You can also assemble the lasagna without baking, then cover well and freeze.
How To Reheat Lasagna
If you’ve frozen individual leftover servings, just pop them in the oven at 350°F covered, until reheated. It will take about 30 minutes! Or, feel free to heat those leftovers in the microwave if you just can’t wait!
If you’re baking a pan of frozen lasagna, be sure to defrost overnight in the refrigerator then bake according to directions.
Isn’t it good to know that you can take a few shortcuts without sacrificing flavor! We think this no fuss gluten-free vegan lasagna is absolutely perfect and I hope you love it too!
Other Italian Recipes To Try
Coffee Granita (for dessert of course!)
No Fuss Vegan Lasagna
This no-fuss vegan lasagna recipe is pure comfort with a flavorful meatless sauce, vegan ricotta, noodles, and veggies. Nut-free Gluten free
Ingredients
- 1 box no boil lasagna noodles
- 4 cups shredded vegan mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup vegan parm
- 1 package Gardein Beefless Ground
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 24 oz pasta sauce
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 cups spinach, stems removed
Vegan Ricotta
- 1 block extra-firm tofu, drained
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 2 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°F. Prepare noodle - Take no-boil noodles out of box and set aside OR Cook pasta al dente according to package directions. Rinse under cold water and set aside.
- Brown beefless ground until slightly browned. Add in onion and garlic (diced peppers or other veggies if you'd like) and cook over medium high heat until tender.
- Stir in pasta sauce, Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper flakes. Simmer 5 minutes.
- In a food processor or blender, combine tofu, garlic, lemon juice, nutritional yeast and salt. Blend until smooth and creamy stopping to scrape the sides as needed. If your ricotta is too thick, add 1 - 2 tablespoons of water as needed to reach desired consistency.
- Add 1 cup sauce to a 9x13 pan. Top with 3 lasagna noodles. Layer with 1/3 of the ricotta mixture, 1/3 of the vegan mozzarella, a thin layer of spinach and 1 cup of meat sauce. Repeat finishing with noodles topped with sauce, mozzarella cheese and parm.
- Cover with foil and bake 45 minutes. Uncover, bake an additional 5 minutes or until browned and bubbly.
- Rest 10-15 minutes before cutting.
Notes
MAKE-AHEAD: Cover lasagna tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate up to 48 hours. To bake, remove plastic wrap, cover and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover; bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until completely cooked through.
*TO FREEZE: Cover lasagna tightly with plastic wrap, then aluminum foil. Freeze up to 3 months. To bake, defrost overnight, then remove plastic wrap, cover with foil and bake according to directions above.
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Lasagna is one of my all time favorite Italian dishes. This vegan version looks pretty incredible. Need to try!