Meatless Mondays – Linguine Casserole

My friend Kathy asked me for a vegan casserole recipe that she could make for “Teacher Appreciation Day” at my Grandson’s school (here niece also goes there and she volunteers there and she knows one of the teachers is vegan). Here’s the recipe I gave her with some added ingredients (in green) I would use the next time I make it.

(I adjusted the recipe from the book 1,000 Vegan Recipes by Robin Robertson – one of my faves).

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces linguine (or fettuccine) broken into thirds
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, chopped
  
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 8 ounces white mushrooms, lightly rinsed and dried and cut into 1/4 -inch slices
• 8 ounces seitan (or tempeh or tofu)
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• 1/4 cup vegan margarine
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley
• 3/4 tsp dried thyme
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup vegan Parmesan (optional)
• 1/4 cup bread crumbs
• dash paprika
  

1.  Lightly oil a 10-inch baking dish and set aside. Cook the noodles in a saucepan of boiling, salted water until al dente, about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.

2. Prehead the oven to 350 degrees.

3. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent, add the garlic and mix together.

4. Add the mushrooms and cook until they’re softened, about 5 minutes.

5. Stir in the seitan (or tofu or tempeh) and peas and set aside.

6. In a medium saucepan, melt the margarine and slowly stir in the flour – making a paste.

7. Slowly stir in the broth. Then add the parsley, thyme and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring, until thickened.

8. Transfer the noodles, sauce and seitan mixture into the prepared baking pan. Mix together evenly coating the noodles with the sauce.

9. Top with “parmesan”, bread crumbs and dash of paprika.

10. Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until top is browned about 10 minutes longer.

Enjoy!
~ Lita