This the Best Lasagna We Ever Had plus more! When I was a kid, we used to come into the city and go to a great Italian restaurant in the Village. None of us can remember the name but we all remember the amazing vegetable lasagna. In this remake, roasted vegetables and homemade cashew ricotta are the stars of the show!
This is a big production for one day so I always try to make the sauce and cheese ahead of time.
Sauce
1 onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, through the press
1 bunch of fresh basil, chiffonade
2 cans San Marzano tomatoes
Cashew Spinach Ricotta
2 cups raw cashews
1 box frozen organic spinach
Roasted Vegetables
3 carrots
2 zucchini
1 yellow squash
Olive oil
S and P
Lasagna
1 1/2 boxes of good lasagna noodles
Sauté the onion in olive oil in a deep pot with a little salt. When translucent, add the garlic and stir. Add the basil. Pass the tomatoes through the Foley Mill and add them into the pot. Salt again. Bring to a boil and then let it simmer as long as possible.
Soak the cashews the night before, at least 8 hours if not longer. Using the blender, process 1 cup of cashews to 3/4 cup water. Let it go for a while until thoroughly mixed. Do this until all cashews are processed. Place the cheese into a strainer with a very small mesh to drain the excess water, if necessary. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Thaw the spinach and press out all of the water.
Preheat the oven to 400. Cut the carrots, zucchinis, and squash on the bias as big as possible.Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes. Set aside.
Boil up the lasagna noodles in a well salted pot of water. Drop into an ice bath to stop the cooking when al dente, about 4 minutes.
Mix the spinach in with a cup of the cheese and leave the rest plain. Season both with salt.
Reheat the oven to 350. To assemble the lasagna, add sauce to the bottom of a deep baking dish. Layer the noodles, cheese, noodles, sauce and vegetables, noodles, cheese, noodles, sauce and vegetables, alternating plain cheese and spinach cheese until you are done. Top the last layer of noodles with sauce.
Bake for about 20 minutes and let it sit for 10 minutes to settle. Serve and enjoy!
