Most people don’t even know this is a meatless lasagna until they are told!  And as the picture shows, you can make smaller portions, cover it with plastic wrap, and heat it up later for a quick meal!

This recipe includes two types of vegetables that are healthy for you cooked or uncooked…tomatoes and carrots.  Both contain lycopene, but tomatoes contain the most.  The American Cancer Society states on its website that “tomatoes are the most concentrated food source of lycopene…studies that looked at lycopene levels in the blood found that levels were higher after people ate cooked tomatoes than after they ate raw tomatoes or drank tomato juice. This suggests that lycopene in cooked tomato products such as tomato sauce or paste may be more readily absorbed by the body than lycopene in raw tomatoes.” Eating lycopene-rich vegetables and fruits together with a small amount of oil or fat such as coconut oil increases the amount of lycopene absorbed by the intestines.

This dish is gluten-free, dairy-free, and meat-free.  The only oils used in it are coconut and palm oil.  As always, try to use organic ingredients!

You will need:

4-5 medium tomatoes, diced

1 vidalia onion, chopped

3 medium carrots, sliced into 1/4 inch pieces

large handful of raw wild mushrooms, diced into small pieces

1 package of ToFurky “ground beef” (sold at most health food stores, near the tofu)

“Tinkyada” brown rice lasagna sheets (sold at most health food stores, and some upscale grocery stores)

2 large handfuls of raw spinach, chopped

Italian seasoning

fresh herbs such as basil, oregano, fennel seeds

sea salt

“Galaxy Nutritional Foods” vegan cheese ( get a package of both mozzarella and cheddar cheese of possible.

Directions:

(Grease a glass lasagna pan with either coconut oil or palm oil.  Use enough pasta sheets according to the size of your pan.  This recipe was good for one full 4×8 inch loaf pan and 4 small individual containers.)

1.   Cook diced carrots in boiling water until almost soft.  At the same time, saute the onions and tomatoes in the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat, season with Italian seasonings and sea salt.  Additionally, cook the brown rice pasta according to instructions and time it so that the pasta is ready to use when the tomato and onion mixture is still hot.

2.  When carrots are almost soft, drain them out of the water with a slotted spoon and put into the onion/tomato mixture, and add the diced mushrooms.  Add the ToFurky ground beef, and toss until everything evenly mixed.  Allow to cook for about 3 minutes, tossing after each minute.  Turn off heat.  Add some of the carrot water if it seems too dry.  Season with fresh herbs.

3.  When pasta is ready, layer the pasta and tomato sauce, sprinkling the chopped spinach and various vegan cheeses on top of each layer.  End the last layer with a hefty topping of cheese and a sprinkle of Italian herbs and sea salt.  Use what is left over to fill up additional ceramic individual containers and wrap with plastic wrap, freeze or refrigerate, and use at a later date by simply heating until hot.

4.  Bake what you plan to eat at about 300 degrees F until cheese is melted.