Vegan eggplant lasagna, made with eggplant slices, marinara sauce, vegan tofu ricotta and vegan parmesan cheese. It's a delicious gluten-free entrée!
I'm eating carbs all the time (the good ones, of course). I don't avoid them because they're delicious, super healthy and are the fuel our body needs, but I know some of you guys enjoy this kind of recipes, where veggies are used instead of pasta.
Eggplant and zucchini can be used to make this lasagna, but I think eggplant works best and is in season, but feel free to use zucchini or even lasagna noodles instead, just cook them according to package directions.
It's extremely good and there are so many lasagna fillings you can use, like our vegan bolognese sauce or our lentil bolognese. You can also use eggplant slices to make our vegan lasagna instead of the lasagna noodles. So many possibilities!
Alberto took some pictures of the process for you guys. Hope you find them useful. Buon appetito!
looking for more eggplant recipes?
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment below, share it, rate it or tag a picture @simpleveganblog on Instagram and hashtag it #simpleveganblog. We’d love to see what you cook!
Vegan Eggplant Lasagna
Ingredients
- 1 large eggplant, sliced into ¼-inch or 5 mm slices lengthwise
- 1 batch of homemade marinara sauce
- 1 batch of vegan tofu ricotta
- ½ batch of vegan parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Add salt to the eggplant slices on both sides and place them in a colander in the sink to remove excess water and bitterness for about 15 minutes. This step is optional, but if you omit it, your lasagna probably will have too much liquid.
- Rinse and dry salted eggplant slices well. Then grill them (or cook them in a skillet) until golden brown (no oil needed).
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF or 200ºC.
- I used a 9 ¼" x 6" x 2" or 23 x 15 x 5 cm baking dish, but you can use any other rectangular or square dish you want.
- Spread a thin layer of marinara sauce on the bottom of a baking or casserole dish. Top with a layer of eggplant slices (see photo).
- Spoon ⅓ of the vegan tofu ricotta over the eggplant slices and spread into an even layer. Then top with some vegan parmesan cheese (about 2 tbsp), some marinara sauce and another layer of eggplant slices. Repeat this step twice (our lasagna had 4 layers of eggplant slices).
- Finally, add some marinara sauce and parmesan cheese on top.
- Bake the eggplant lasagna for about 40 minutes or until golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and let rest for at least 10 minutes before cutting and serving. Serve and enjoy.
- Keep leftovers covered in the fridge for about 3 to 4 days.
Notes
- If you want to reduce the amount of sodium in this recipe, add less salt to the marinara sauce and tofu ricotta, or add less parmesan cheese.
- Eggplant can be replaced by zucchini or lasagna noodles (cook them according to package directions).
- Use store-bought marinara sauce and any store-bought cheese if you want to save some time.
- Feel free to use our vegan bolognese sauce or our lentil bolognese instead of the marinara sauce (you can omit the tofu ricotta as well if you want).
Tanesha says
Can you freeze leftovers
Iosune Robles says
Hi! Yes, you can keep leftovers covered in the fridge for about 3 to 4 days 🙂 Have a nice day!
Susan says
I tried it, I loved it! Too time-consuming for a week night, though I know now that I could have made some components on the weekend. I'm not sure I had the right thickness of the eggplant but it took a really long time to cook it in batches in a skillet. I had 2 eggplants so no substitution or supplementing necessary. Used the remainder of eggplant in tiny rolls with a little vegan cheese and the little bit of marinara I had left. I was wondering if your tofu comes in 10-oz. packages because ours is 15-oz, so 10-oz. seemed like an odd amount. I'm so impressed by how good this was! Definitely a keeper - thank you! (I think I have to sneak downstairs and get another serving. Shh.)
Iosune says
Hi Susan! You're so welcome 🙂 So glad you liked it!
Trish says
This is one of the most delicious vegan dishes I have made! And it was easy! Thank you.
I plan to make this dish regularly. I grew up eating this dish and missed it due to having issues with dairy. This tastes as good as the dish my family made and it’s much healthier.
Iosune says
Hi Trish! Thank you so much 🙂
Phil says
I have made this a few times now and it is one of my favorite recipes. I make my own vegan "ricotta" by combining a pack of organic tofu and vegan cream cheese using a potato masher to get the right consistency. I also vary the layers. I will use sauteed onion slices, sun dried tomatoes or even mushrooms.
Iosune says
Hi Phil! Sounds great 🙂 So glad you like it so much!
KARLA BOOKER says
Absolutely delicious and easy to make. I was skeptical about the parmesan and ricotta, but they were TO DIE FOR fabulous! The small kernels of cashew had a bit of a meaty taste... Simply perfect. I, too, ran out of eggplant - my 13x9 in pan was big! So, I added sauteed mushrooms, squash, and spinash... Cannot say how excited I am to find this recipe. Keep up the awesome work for us vegans who love flavor!!
Iosune says
Hi Karla! Thanks a lot 🙂 Have a nice day!
Carol says
This was, overall, quite simple to make for a lasagna. I ran out of eggplant and was able to substitute part of this with zuchinni and prepared the same as the eggplant with nice results.
Iosune says
Hi Carol! So glad you liked it 🙂 Have a nice day!!!
Vicky says
Love love love this recipe. I made it with egplant, vegan tofu ricotta and vegan parmesan. I will be honest, my husband and I are NOT vegetarians, vegans or the like, just trying to cur out a bit of the meat and processed food in our diet. It is now our favorite lasagna recipe. Ty.
Iosune says
Hi Vicky! I'm so happy to hear that 🙂 So glad you guys liked it so much!
VeggieTater says
What a great idea, I was blessed with a slew of eggplant and was looking for some simple recipes and this is perfect! I also have a bunch of potatoes trying to sprout, so I think I will slice them thin on the mandolin and add a couple of layers of those too. Healthier than pasta, and I sure have plenty on hand!
Iosune says
Hi there! Thanks 🙂 Hope you enjoy it!
Daniela says
Hi, I have a question, is it possible to make it in advance and bake it only on the day I’m actually serving the lasagna? I want to make it for Christmas but won’t have time to cook on Christmas Eve/Day
Thank you so much
Iosune says
Hi Daniela! I think it would work well. Just make the lasagna a day in advance, pop in the fridge and then cook in the oven the next day 🙂
Barbara Brenkworth says
This was the absolute best. I made the cheeses ahead of time and then came home from work and grilled the eggplant, assembled and cooked. It was amazing - the tastes and texture were awesome. Thanks so much. I would have never tackled something that seemed as complicated as a lasagna if it weren't so simple!
Iosune says
Hi Barbara! Thank you so much for your comment 🙂 I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
winnie says
Can I also make it with Eggplant instead of zuchini?
Iosune says
Hi Winnie! We used eggplant, but if you want to use zucchini I think it should work as well 🙂
Alocasia says
Hi. Going to be making this lasagna tonight using zucchini. Do I have to salt and drain the zucchini as I would the eggplant? Also, is it the same amount of cooking time for the zucc? Thanks!
Iosune says
Hi Alocasia! No, you haven't, and yes, bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown as well. Hope you like it!