Vegan Lasagna (with Tofu)

Happy Meatless Monday!Happy Vegan MoFo 2013!Just happy HAPPY!Today I want to share the vegan lasagna recipe (well, kinda a recipe) that I made last weekend. When I say "kinda" a recipe it's because most of the time I start with a recipe, but almost always I end up improvising due to a lack of or need to substitute some ingredient or other.This vegan lasagna was no different.Of course, to begin I set a pot of water on the stove to boil to cook my lasagna noodles. Here are the noodles I used and I really liked them!Then I worked on the veggies using what I had on hand....zucchini, squash, green bell peppers, mushrooms, onions, and garlic.The veggies, of course, constituting what will be in the lasagna other than noodles, sauce and filling could've been anything I had already at home. Other options include sundried tomatoes, artichokes, olives, asparagus and any other item that sounds tasty.

I sauteed a little coconut oil (maybe 1 tablespoon) in a pan over medium high heat, then added the chopped onion. Once the onion was translucent I tossed in the veggies to cook a bit.While the veggies were heating through, I started on the filling.In the past, I have been known to use vegan ricotta as a filling. Since I didn't have any vegan ricotta in the house, I decided to make a similar filling using silken tofu. Here's what I used:

• 2 containers Azumaya silken tofu (though on hindsight, I would've used one container)
• 2 Tablespoons Italian Seasonings
• Juice from 1/2 a lemon
• Grated lemon zest (finely grated from about 1 lemon that I had frozen in my freezer)
• 3 Tablespoons Nutritional Yeast
• Salt & Pepper to taste - about 1 teaspoon salt and about 1/2 pepper

Now, after all the parts were ready, it was time to layer the lasagna. I started with a layer of my favorite jar sauce Rao's.Next, a layer of noodles, then a layer of veggies, then noodles, then tofu filling and sauce. I continued until the pan was full.I covered the lasagna with foil and cooked in a preheated 350 degree oven for  50 minutes, then uncovered for 10 minutes more. Pops likes the edges of his lasagna a bit crunchy - which may not be everyone's favorite, so I actually then kept it in the oven uncovered a bit more.Turned out super yummy...not too overrun with sauce or with cheese - which is what I tend to do.Have you ever used tofu in your lasagna before? This was my first time and I was very happy with the results!!Happy Monday Everyone!Enjoy!