Recipe

Roast vegetable and pesto vegan lasagne

All the flavour of the original without any meat or dairy.

Mar 07, 2022 1:00pm
  • 1 hr 15 mins cooking
  • Serves 8
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Roast vegetable and pesto come together in this vegan take on the classic Italian pasta bake. Meat and dairy-free but loaded with flavour. We've used almond milk and margarine to create that creamy bechamel sauce without the dairy.
Looking for more vegetarian lasagne recipes?

Ingredients

  • 2 large red capsicums (700g)
  • ¼ cup (60ml) olive oil
  • 4 large zucchini (600g), sliced thinly lengthways
  • 2 medium eggplant (600g), sliced thinly lengthways
  • 6 fresh lasagne sheets (300g)
  • 150 grams baby spinach leaves
  • ½ cup (40g) finely grated vegan cheddar
Béchamel sauce
  • 60 grams vegan margarine
  • ¼ cup (35g) plain flour
  • 3 cups (750ml) almond milk
  • ½ cup (40g) finely grated vegan cheddar
Pesto
  • ⅓ cup (50g) pine nuts, toasted
  • 2 cloves garlic, quartered
  • 1½ cups firmly packed fresh basil leaves
  • ½ cup (125ml) olive oil

Method

  • 1
    Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F. Oil a deep 3-litre (12-cup) ovenproof dish.
  • 2
    Quarter capsicums; discard seeds and membranes, then slice thickly.
  • 3
    Heat a little of the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. In separate batches, cook capsicum, zucchini then eggplant, adding more of the oil before each batch as necessary until vegetables are browned on both sides. Keep vegetables separate. Season.
  • 4
    Make béchamel sauce, then pesto.
  • 5
    Layer zucchini in dish; top with one-third of the pesto, two lasagne sheets and one-third of the béchamel sauce. Repeat layering, replacing vegetable layer with eggplant, then capsicum and 100g (3oz) of the spinach. Cover dish with foil.
  • 6
    Bake lasagne for 40 minutes. Remove foil; sprinkle with vegan cheddar. Bake, uncovered, for a further 15 minutes or until browned. Stand for 10 minutes before serving, topped with remaining spinach leaves.
Béchamel sauce
  • 7
    Melt margarine in a medium saucepan over medium heat, add flour; cook, stirring, until mixture bubbles. Gradually add almond milk, stirring until mixture boils and thickens. Remove from heat; stir in vegan cheddar. Season to taste.
Pesto
  • 8
    Process pine nuts, garlic and basil until finely chopped. With motor operating, gradually add oil in a thin, steady stream until combined. Season to taste.

Notes

For a short-cut use ready-made vegan pesto and char-grilled deli vegetables.

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