Vegan Lasagne
My boyfriend said this was one of the best lasagnes he’s ever tried. This recipe is really easy and will definitely become a regular in our household!
For this recipe I used Birdseye Au plant-based mince, but you can use any of your favourite vegan mince or swap it out for 2 x cans of lentils.
Ingredients:
Bolognese
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 pack plant based mince
1 plant based “beef” stock cube
2 cans chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Salt & pepper to taste
Bechamel
3 tbsp vegan butter/margarine
2 tbsp flour
2 cups plant based milk
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
Salt & pepper to taste
Other Ingredients
Lasagne Sheets
Optional: grated vegan cheese
Method:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
Heat a large fry pan with some olive oil and fry onion and garlic until soft and fragrant. Add plant based mince and fry for 5-10 minutes (depending on if frozen or not). Add the vegan beef stock cube and mix into he mince. Add canned tomatoes, tomato paste, balsamic vinegar to the fry pan and mix to combine. Then season to taste with salt & pepper. Simmer on low heat for 10-15 minutes. Taste and season again if necessary.
Meanwhile, make the béchamel by melting the butter in a saucepan. Add the flour and whisk into the butter. Add plant milk and continue whisking until it begins to thicken. Add nutritional yeast, onion powder and salt & pepper then keep whisking until everything is combined and its nice and thick.
Assemble the lasagne like below:
Thin layer of béchamel on the base
Lasagne sheets
1/3 bolognese mixture
Lasagne sheets
1/3 bechamel mixture
Lasagne sheets
1/3 bolognese mixture
Lasagne sheets
1/3 bechamel mixture
Lasagne sheets
1/3 bolognese mixture
Lasagne sheets
1/3 bechamel mixture
Grated vegan cheese
Cover with tin foil and cook in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove tin foil and cook for another 20 minutes.
Leave to cool for 5 minutes then slice and enjoy!!!
Spicy Chorizo Pasta
This spicy chorizo pasta uses no expensive ingredients but instead the chorizo is made out of, you guessed it, tofu!
Ingredients (Tofu Chorizo)
300g tofu
2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp oregano
A good pinch of salt & pepper
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp olive oil
Ingredients (Chorizo Pasta)
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 batch of tofu chorizo
1 tbsp chopped parsley
2 cups passata sauce or 1 tin chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato paste
3 tbsp nutritional yeast
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1-2 tsp chilli flakes
Salt & pepper
3-4 portions of pasta, cooked
Method
For the tofu chorizo, pat the tofu dry, pressing out most of the liquid. Crumble into a bowl and add all the other ingredients to the tofu. Mix thoroughly with your hands until the tofu is fully coated. Line a baking tray or air fryer with baking paper and press the tofu lightly into a thin layer covering the tray. Bake at 200 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Take out after 10 minutes to mix around the tofu then every 5 minutes after that to ensure all the tofu gets cooked evenly.
For the chorizo pasta, fry off onion & garlic then add tofu chorizo and parsley. Add passata, tomato paste, nutritional yeast, balsamic, chilli flakes and simmer for 10 minutes on low to reduce and thicken. Season with salt & pepper. Add cooked pasta to sauce and mix through.
Top with vegan parmesan and parsley if you like and enjoy!!
Cashew Nut Stir Fry
Stir fries are one of the simplest vegan recipes to make. Just throwing whatever veggies you have left into a pan with a delicious sauce. Here is one of my favourite recipes for a stir fry.
Ingredients
1/2 cup raw cashews
4 servings rice, cooked
1 block tofu, cut into bite-sized cubes
1 onion, diced
1 carrot, sliced into half-moons
1 capsicum, sliced
1 broccoli, cut into small florets
Sauce
4 tbsp soy
4 tsp brown sugar
2 cloves garlic
Pinch ground pepper
2 tsp cornflour
1/3 cup water
Method
Toast cashews lightly in a large fry pan. Set aside then use the same fry pan to fry veggies and tofu until softened and browned.
Mix together sauce ingredients in a bowl then add to softened veggies. Add cashews then serve with cooked rice.
Sticky Tofu Mince
This one is for those tofu haters out there (and for everyone else obviously). I firmly believe anyone can like tofu because it’s so versatile, you just need to find your way of cooking it. This recipe is a great place to start, you can barely tell you are eating tofu in this recipe and the sticky sauce is so good! Serve with rice for a tasty meal.
Ingredients (serves 4)
Two blocks tofu, patted dry and crumbled small
1/2 red onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, crushed
Sticky Sauce
2 tbsp thick vegan teriyaki sauce or coconut aminos
2 tbsp tamari
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1/4 cup water
1/2 tbsp sesame oil
Optional: 1 tbsp vegan fish sauce (I use Culley’s)
4 servings rice, cooked, to serve
Chopped spring onions, to serve
Spicy version! Swap teriyaki/aminos for gochujang paste - this is also very yummy!
Method
Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Crumble tofu onto a lined baking tray and spread out evenly. Place in the oven for 30 minutes, taking out halfway and turning the tofu over so all sides get crispy.
Meanwhile make your sauce by mixing all the ingredients together in a bowl.
Heat a large fry pan with oil then add onion and garlic. Fry until translucent then add cooked crumbled tofu. Add your sauce and simmer for 10 minutes on a low heat until thickens. Serve on some rice with chopped spring onions
Vegan Thai Peanut Curry
Anything peanut flavoured is always a winner and this curry is no different! A tasty meal for the whole family with wok fried vegetables and tofu to top the delicious coconut, peanut sauce.
Ingredients:
4 portions rice, cooked
Marinated tofu:
600g tofu, chopped into bite-sized cubes
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp maple syrup
1 tsp sesame oil
Vegetables:
1 carrot, sliced
1 broccoli, cut into florets
1 can baby corn, drained
Thai Peanut Curry:
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 onion, diced
1 chilli, chopped
1 inch ginger, grated
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp paprika
500ml veg stock
3 tbsp peanut butter
1 tsp coconut sugar (sub brown sugar)
1 tbsp soy sauce
Optional: 1-2 tbsp vegan fish sauce (I used Culley’s )
400ml coconut milk
Salt to taste
Method:
First marinate your tofu by placing marinade ingredients in a container, adding the tofu and shaking until tofu is coated. Set aside.
Add onion, garlic, chilli and ginger to a large fry pan and fry until soft. Add spices and fry for a minute or two. Add stock, peanut butter, sugar, soy sauce, vegan fish sauce (if using) and coconut milk and simmer for 15 minutes. Season with salt.
Meanwhile cook rice and fry veggies and tofu in a separate pan until golden. Once golden add any remaining marinade to the veg/tofu.
Serve curry, rice and veggies together topped with sesame seeds and coriander.
Eggplant Spaghetti Bolognaise
This is seriously the best best best spaghetti bolognese I have ever made. A super tasty meal that you can make for the whole family.
I found some tins of already fried eggplant in tomato sauce at Moore Wilson’s which you can use instead. Just replace the eggplants and 1 x can of tomatoes with 2 x tins of Tamek Fried Eggplant 380g.
Ingredients
3 eggplants, sliced into strips and fried with salt and pepper to taste until they’re soft
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, crushed
3 cans of crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 can lentils, drained and rinsed
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tsp maple syrup
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
Salt & pepper to taste
4 portions of spaghetti
To Serve
Cashew Parmesan
Parsley
Method
Heat olive oil in a fry pan (you can reuse the one you fried your eggplants in) and add in the onion and garlic. Fry until translucent.
Add spaghetti to a pot of boiling water and cook for 20 or so minutes until soft.
Add fried eggplants and the rinsed lentils to the frypan. Cook for a few minutes then add in the rest of the ingredients and simmer until reduced. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Serve with the cooked spaghetti and some parsley and vegan cashew Parmesan.
Enjoy!!