PPN Tofu-Ricotta, Zucchini and Pumpkin Lasagne

I once made a lasagne with tofu. It was very soon after I became a vegetarian. My mum was away and I offered to make dinner for my brother and my dad. I was both inexperienced and gung-ho with the tofu. Not a good combination. I made a brilliant lasagne with tofu last week and I am confident my dad and brothers would appreciate this one far more now that I know what I am doing.

I was inspired by this Carrot Courgette and Ricotta Lasagne that Katie posted recently. It looked delicious and lighter than the average béchamel-sauce-laded lasagne. Ricotta is a lighter alternative. Perfect if I liked the stuff. But I don’t. I feel I should but it rarely tastes right. Then I looked at all the tofu in the fridge and dug out a PPK recipe for tofu ricotta. So much better.

We needed the vegie-packed lasagne after all the chips and pasties during our trip to Port Fairy. I made it while listening to the independents announce their allegiances to the country. Seventeen days after the national election, seventeen days of a hung parliament, two independent votes gave the Labor Party enough support to govern. The nation breathed a collective sigh of relief when finally we had a Prime Minister appointed. A momentous day. The lasagne was a celebration of interesting times and our female prime minister being returned to power.

It was an excellent lasagne. Different to my regular lasagne. No béchamel sauce. No tomato sauce. Almost vegan. Only a sprinkling of parmesan cheese on top. Nutritional yeast could be used instead. I used pumpkin instead of carrot but either would work well. The tofu ricotta and slices of fresh tomato made the difference. Both tasted lighter and were full of flavour. Exactly what I loved in this lasagne.

I am sending this lasagne to Abby of Eat the Right Stuff. She is hosting this week’s Presto Pasta Night, the blog event for pasta lovers founded by Ruth of Once Upon a Feast.

Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
This time last year: Chocolate cookies and pizza
This time two years ago: Choc chip and cherry cookies

Tofu-Ricotta, Zucchini and Pumpkin Lasagne
serves 4-6

Zucchini and pumpkin filling:

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 3 medium zucchinis, grated (400g)
• 400g pumpkin, grated (weight before trimming and peeling)
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ cup passata
  

Pesto Tofu Ricotta:

• 350g tofu, crumbled (this was what I had but in future I would use 450g)
• ¼ cup nutritional yeast flakes
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• ¼ tsp salt
• plenty of black pepper
• 2-3 tbsp pesto (I used 2 but you could have a bit more in there if you want the pesto taste to shine through more)
  

To assemble:

• extra ¼ cup passata
• 4 (or 5) medium tomatoes, slices in about ½ cm slices
• 2-3 tbsp parmesan cheese (or nutritional yeast flakes for vegan lasagne)
• 2-3 tbsp stale breadcrumbs
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• fresh lasagne sheets – about 200-300g

To make the zucchini and pumpkin filling: fry onion in olive oil for about 10 minutes on low heat in a large frypan till onions are quite soft. Add zucchini, pumpkin, garlic and salt. Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes or until vegies soften. Stir through passata. Remove from heat and set aside until ready to use.

To make pesto tofu ricotta: mix all ingredients together with a spoon till well combined. This will be quite crumbly in texture.

To assemble grease a lasagne dish (oops I didn’t grease it so this is optional) and spread layers of components as below:

Layers:

• ¼ cup passata and ¼ cup of zucchini and pumpkin filling
• lasagne sheets
• ½ of the zucchini and pumpkin filling
• ¼ of the ricotta
• lasagne sheets
• half the tomatoes
• seasoning (if I had more ricotta I would used it here but instead I sprinkled a bit of extra nutritional yeast)
• lasagne sheets
• ½ of the zucchini and pumpkin filling
• ¼ of the ricotta
• lasagne sheets
• ½ of the ricotta
• Sprinkle with parmesan, breadcrumbs, sesame seeds
  

Bake at 220 C for about 45 minutes or until the topping is crispy and the lasagne sheets are soft when a knife is inserted in the middle. Check about halfway through and if topping is browning too fast you could cover with foil or place on a lower rung of the oven.

On the Stereo:
Mojo Presents the Quiet Revolution – Various Artists