Recipe: Vegetarian Lasagna

I'm not a vegetarian (I think the post with caramel bacon proves that lol) nor am I vegan.  However, this recipe is my first ever vegan recipe. I went to go visit one of my good friends in Boston, and it just so happens that she and her sister are lactose intolerant. They also eat very healthily on a regular basis.
I love cooking and I love a challenge so I decided that I wanted to try to cook for them. While we were in the grocery store, I looked around and the cogs started turning. I came up with a vegetable lasagna using yams, baby kale, homemade tomato sauce and lactose free cheese. It's health conscious but delicious. And I was really excited because I've never had kale before, nor lactose free cheese. I love trying new things and this was a great way to experiment.

and pretty too!

This dish is a little time consuming because it has so many preparatory steps.  You can either make things in advance (like the sauce and yams) or I would set aside about an hour and a half or a little longer to do everything all at once.

Tomato Sauce
2 cans San Marino pureed tomato (any tomato puree will do, but this was the least expensive brand carried at Whole Foods where we were shopping)
1 tbs olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp rosemary
1 tsp basil
1 tsp italian spice mix (optional)

In a deep pot, sweat the onion and garlic in the olive oil. When they start to get translucent add the tomato puree. Fill each can about halfway with water. Swirl to make sure all of the puree gets off the sides and then add to the pot. Simmer on a low heat and then add your spices. Cover to avoid splatter and stir every couple of minutes.
If you're preparing everything in the same day you can start prepping everything else.

The Yams
3 or 4 medium yams, longer and thinner are easier to use
Salt
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tbs olive oil

Preheat your oven to 350°F.
Peel the yams and slice into thin rounds. Try to get them as thin and as uniform as you can manage. The thicker they are, the longer they'll have to bake. Drizzle a little bit of olive oil. Add yams and sprinkle with salt and brown sugar and toss well. Try to make sure each round is coated well.
Bake for about 20 minutes or until the rounds are just fork tender. Flip them about halfway through.

The Pasta
1 package of Lasagna

Prepare your pasta according to the instructions on the box. As the water is boiling prepare your kale.
Drain your lasagna when it's just about al dente.

The Kale
1 large package kale (use more than you think necessary, greens shrink incredibly as you cook them)
1 tbs olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Sautee your kale in hot oil.  It should cook down quickly, so keep a close eye on it.

Putting it all together
Lasagna
Yams
Kale
Tomato Sauce
Grated Lactose free mozzarella (if you don't have food allergies or aren't vegan, feel free to use regular cheese)
Lactose free parmigian cheese

Now that all of your base ingredients are ready, arrange them around you so that they are easily accessible.

Coat the bottom of your oven proof casserole dish with a thin layer of tomato sauce. Lay down strips of lasagna and then coat with a layer of yam rounds, your mozzarella and parmigian cheese. Pour on some tomato sauce and repeat the same layering pattern.  After this set, add your cooked kale and keep layering. Lasagna, yams, mozzarella, parmigian and then sauce.  On your last layer of tomato sauce, coat well with extra cheese.
Bake for 15-20 minutes. Everything should already be cooked through so this is just a great way for all the flavors to come together.

I'd never had lactose free cheese or kale before this meal and I have to say they were very tasty. I would be hard-pressed to tell you the difference between real cheese and the lactose free version. And the kale was delicious prepped so simply. To me it seemed to be a cross between spinach and broccoli rape, with that slightly bitter taste.  It really paired well with the sauce.

-Raspberry Truffle