How many times per year do you have the desire to enjoy a hearty, delicious, homemade, decadent lasagna?
Ten times per year? Perhaps fifty? And how many times per year do you have the energy to make such a lasagna, from scratch, in your kitchen, using your dishes? One time per year? Absolutely never times per year?
I feel you. I love lasagna way more than I love making it. Additionally, I’ve had to get creative over here as our oven has been broken for over 5 months. Enter: Lasagna Soup. (All I’ll say about the broken oven is that if you live in Quebec, look into Quebec’s Legal Warranty. It obviously doesn’t guarantee speedy results, but it IS saving me from having to replace a 4 year old oven that shot craps. We’ll talk later.)I did not invent Lasagna soup! But I did come up with incredibly simple vegan version. Most of these ingredients are pantry staples, and I believe you’ll find that this dish comes together with relatively little effort.
Before the Lasagna Soup, two quick notes on nutrition
You know I can’t help it, I’m a nutrition coach.
First up, there are lentils in here.
Why? Well because as much as we all might enjoy eating nothing but white pasta, our bodies function better when we also consume iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc, protein and FIBER. Lentils are a cheap, quick cooking, tasty way to boost the nutrition of many a dish, and they go beautifully with this soup. I’m cooking for two active adults and one growing kiddo over here. Adding lentils to stuff is one of the ways I make sure we all meet our nutritional needs.
Choose red (aka crimson) lentils if you’d like them to disappear into the dish, never to be noticed by a picky eater. Choose beluga or puy lentils for something that holds its shape while cooking. If you’re not at all picky, choose whatever lentil you have on hand and save yourself a trip to the store.Second, let’s talk noodles.
Raise your hand if you love pasta! Raise your hand if you love whole wheat pasta! Wait… where did everybody go?I get it, most people don’t love whole wheat pasta. You want your meal to be enjoyable, not a chore. Whole wheat pasta just doesn’t go down like it’s hyper-palatable, processed counterpart. But here’s the thing, it’s good to have to chew. High-fiber foods trigger our natural feelings of satiety and satisfaction. These feelings are a critical part of the energy balance equation. They help us to actually feel full when we’ve eaten enough, and they prevent us from accidentally consuming way more than we need.
Aside from that, whole grains deliver loads of iron, zinc, magnesium, complex carbohydrates, and protein. For these reasons, we go 50/50 white/wheat at my house. My family is not down for 100% whole wheat, but I’m telling you: they don’t even notice when it’s 50/50. If 50% is too much for you, start with just 25%. You don’t have to dive into the deep end if it’s your first day at the pool, but I do believe it’s well worth it to get your feet wet.
Now on with the Vegan Lasagna Soup Recipe!
The instructions below are for an instant pot. Don’t have an instant pot? No problem. You can make this in a large soup pot. All you’ll need to do differently is, well, make it in a large soup pot. In that case, you’ll just bring your soup to a boil and then simmer it until the noodles are done.
I hope you love the Tofu Ricotta as much as I do. Leftovers make a great spread for toast, sandwiches, crackers, or even as something to toss into a salad.
Vegan Lasagna Soup with Tofu Ricotta – Instant Pot or Stove Top
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 large carrot, diced
- 1 bulb of garlic, divided, minced
- 2 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1.5 tsp salt, divided
- 2 tsp onion powder, divided
- 1/2 cup red or green lentils, rinsed
- 1 16 ounce can of no-salt-added diced tomatoes
- 4 cups veggie broth
- 9 sheets of lasagna (1/2 wheat, 1/2 white. See head notes. )
- 2 cups tomato sauce or passata
- 5 oz baby spinach
- 1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast, divided
- 14 oz block firm tofu
- 2 tbsp miso paste
- 1 small bunch fresh basil
- 3 tbsp lemon juice, plus more to taste
Method
- Press “Sauté” on the instant pot.* When hot, sauté the onion and carrot with 1 tbsp olive oil (or omit oil and use veggie broth to water sauté) until beginning to soften up. About 5 minutes.
- Mince 8 to 10 cloves of garlic. Set 1 clove of garlic aside for tofu ricotta.
- Add garlic and a pinch of salt to the pot. Cook for 2 mins, stirring occasionally.
- Now add 1/2 cup lentils, diced tomatoes, 4 cups of veggie broth, 1 tsp salt, 2 Tbsp Italian seasoning, 1 tsp onion powder and stir.
- Break up the 9 lasagna sheets and mix in. (make sure to use small pieces and mix them in well otherwise they tend to stick)
- Close the lid and Pressure cook on manual high for 3 mins. Let the pressure release for 10 minutes(ish), then if there is still pressure in the pot, manually release carefully and open.
- In the mean time, make the Tofu Ricotta. Remove tofu from package and give it a quick rinse. Crumble the tofu into a food processor. Add garlic, miso, 1/4 cup nutritional yeast, 1tbsp olive oil, fresh basil and lemon juice and process until you have a creamy, smooth texture. Taste and adjust for salt, acidity, and cheesiness. Add more salt, lemon juice, or nutritional yeast if needed to suite your taste.
- After releasing the pressure, set again to “Sauté.” Stir in 1/4 cup nutritional yeast, 2 cups of baby spinach, 2 cups of tomato sauce and the kalamata olives. If you’d like it to be more tomatoey, stir in 2 tbsp of tomato paste. Be sure the marinara sauce has heated through and the spinach has wilted before serving. Taste and adjust salt and flavour.
- Serve with tofu ricotta and garlic bread. You can stir the tofu ricotta right into the soup. You may also want to serve with a dollop of basil pesto and/or red pepper flakes.
*Don’t have an instant pot? No sweat. Just make this in a large soup pot. Rather than cook on high for 3 minutes, you’ll simmer until the lentils are cooked and the noodles are soft about 25 minutes.