Healthy vegan lasagne with butternut squash and hazelnut
This healthy vegan lasagne is so rich and filling – serve it to guests and we doubt they’d even notice that it was vegan. Using hazelnut milk in the béchamel really ups the hazelnut flavour of the dish.
Vegetarian lasagne has been a classic on pub menus for years because it’s an easy thing to make if you’re just starting to cook meat-free. It’s quite simple to put together, has plenty of flavour and is comforting in all seasons – you just need to vary the ingredients you’re using to include seasonal veg.
It therefore makes sense that vegan lasagne is taking off just as much. Essentially, it’s the same basis as a vegetarian lasagne, you just switch the dairy elements for vegan alternatives!
So what makes a good vegan lasagne?
The key to a traditional Italian lasagne is layering – it’s made up of delicious layers of tomato sauce (classically with meat, which can easily be substituted for soy mince in a vegan lasagne or vegetarian lasagne, or seasonal vegetables as it the case here). Next up is bechamel sauce (a creamy white sauce made from butter or oil, flour and milk, all of which can be vegan versions), followed by lasagne sheets and some cheese to finish it all off. Bake in the oven and you’re done.
The following delicious recipe contains many of the elements of a traditional lasagne – bechamel sauce, tomato sauce and lasagne sheets – but instead of meat or a meat replacement, butternut squash is used to create a really fresh flavour, and it makes it slightly healthier too.
The addition of hazelnuts to this recipe adds a really nice crunchy texture to an otherwise smooth vegan lasagne, and the use of hazelnut milk rather than soy milk adds even more flavour to the mix.
When you’ve made it once, we guarantee this vegan lasagne will go onto your list of favourites to make again and again.
Vegan lasagne ingredients tip!
Just a word of caution, whereas the majority of dried pasta is almost guaranteed to be vegan, there are a surprising amount of dried lasagne sheets that contain egg, so when you’re shopping for your vegan lasagne ingredients, make sure you triple check the lasagne sheet box.
Total Time: 85 minutes
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 4
Rating:
Total Time: 85 minutes
Servings: 4
Ingredients
Method
Ingredients
(Servings: 4)
- 150 150 g butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1cm chunks
- 0.25 0.25 tbsp olive oil
- 0.25 0.25 tsp sea salt
- freshly ground pepper
- 0.75 0.75 sprigs rosemary
- For the tomato sauce
- 0.25 0.25 tbsp olive oil
- 0.25 0.25 onion, roughly chopped
- 0.5 0.5 garlic cloves, crushed
- 62.5 62.5 g chestnut mushrooms, finely chopped
- 0.25 0.25 tsp sea salt
- 0.5 0.5 tins chopped tomatoes
- For the greens
- 0.25 0.25 tbsp olive oil
- 0.125 0.125 tsp chilli flakes
- 0.5 0.5 garlic cloves
- 50 50 g greens of choice
- For the vegan bechamel
- 7.5 7.5 g plain flour
- 3.75 3.75 ml olive oil
- 100 100 ml unsweetened hazelnut milk, heated
- Good grating of fresh nutmeg
- 0.125 0.125 tsp sea salt
- To assemble the vegan lasagne
- 58.75 58.75 g dried egg-free lasagne sheets
- 7.5 7.5 g vegan Parmesan
- 12.5 12.5 g hazelnuts, roughly chopped
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180C fan/200C. Mix the squash with the olive oil, salt, pepper and rosemary in a roasting tin, and transfer to the oven to roast for 30 minutes.
- For the tomato sauce, heat the olive oil in a large saucepan, then add the onion and garlic. Stir, then cover and soften for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the mushrooms and stir-fry for 5-6 minutes along with a little sea salt until softened. Add the tinned tomatoes, then lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes until thick.
- For the greens, heat the oil in a large saucepan, then add the chilli flakes and garlic. Fry for 30 seconds until aromatic, then add the greens and stir-fry for 5 minutes with a splash of water until softened. Season with salt as needed.
- For the vegan béchamel, mix the flour and olive oil in a saucepan on a medium heat until it clumps together into a smooth ball. Add a splash of the hot hazelnut milk, and whisk until combined. Repeat with a splash of milk and a good stir – you will go from a smooth ball of dough to eventually a smooth liquid. Stir continuously on a medium heat for 3-4 minutes until the mixture comes to the boil and thickens. Taste and season with the nutmeg, salt and pepper.
- Spread a little béchamel on the base of a lasagne dish, then top with 3 sheets of lasagne. Spread with half the tomato sauce and the spring greens, then top with 3 more lasagne sheets. Spread with the remaining half of the tomato sauce and the butternut squash, then top with a final three lasagne sheets. Spread the béchamel over the top, scatter with the hazelnuts and vegan Parmesan, then transfer to the oven to bake for 35-40 minutes until golden brown. Serve hot.
