The rich flavor of oven roasted vegetables, combined with my garlic herb tofu ricotta and some tangy sweet marinara. This gluten-free, vegan lasagna recipe is elegant, delicious, and perfect for the entire family!
There’s just something comforting and exciting about dishes coming out of the oven. They are usually piping hot and often creamy or saucy. Baked dishes are perfect for large gatherings, and Italian ones are some of my favorites.
After I became vegan, I needed a vegan ricotta recipe to use in my baked dishes. I was able to create one of the easiest, tastiest, and healthiest recipes using vegan ricotta, which was my Garlic Herb Vegan Ricotta Recipe that I shared with you last year. Instead of using nuts, I used sprouted tofu as the base and added in garlic and some of my favorite herbs. It’s such a simple recipe, perfect to serve as a stand-alone appetizer with a side of sliced french bread or crackers, or spread onto a sandwich. I served it at my last Holiday party for 35 non-vegans and it was a huge hit, even with the kids!
The Best Vegan Lasagna Recipe
Of course now that I have the perfect vegan ricotta recipe, it’s only natural that I share one of my favorites, Vegan Lasagna Recipes with Roasted Veggies & Garlic Herb Ricotta. This recipe is simple, yet so delicious! It’s layered with a delicious marinara, my vegan ricotta recipe, and oven-roasted vegetables. I finished it with a final layer of the balsamic-marinara, some Italian breadcrumbs, and fresh herbs. Bake it in the oven for some delicious Italian comfort food!
Oven roasting vegetables bring out the flavors and sweetness. Also, instead of a traditional marinara, I love adding in a little balsamic vinegar on top for a sweet and tart combination. You can easily assemble this vegan lasagna recipe ahead of time and bake it in the oven prior to serving, making it perfect for the holidays or any gathering of family and friends.
Our India Trip
I’ve been CRAVING Italian food for the past 3 weeks, so you can bet this recipe is on the menu for dinner next week, just as soon as I get over this jet-lag. My entire family (the 4 of us) took a trip half way around the world to India over Thanksgiving break for 2 weeks! Although I was born and raised here in California, my parents are originally from India and would take us back every 2 years throughout our childhood. Those trips are some of by best family memories. Of course as we grew older and started high school/college, our trips to India became less frequent. This was especially true after my dad’s heart transplant, since his doctors did not recommend traveling to developing countries.
This was the first time taking our kids and my first time in 8 years. We had a blast! Traveled a LOT, given that we only had two weeks. We spent then entire time in Gujarat, visiting family and friends. Everyone was so hospitable. The kids were champs throughout the entire trip. Although they were a little young to fully grasp what India has to offer, they did great and embraced the culture. They enjoyed traveling in rikshas, seeing wild stray animals (pigs, dogs, cows, elephants, monkeys) run right by them throughout the streets, and enjoyed the food. We loved all the home-cooked Indian food, all the different types of local fruit, unlimited amounts of Sitaful (otherwise known as Apple Custard or Cherimoya), coconut water, chewing on sugarcane, freshly roasted peanuts, and eating out with Indo-Chinese food and golas (Indian version of shaved ice, but SO much better!).
I took a lot of snacks for the kids and me since it was their first time going to India and my first time after becoming Vegan. I wasn’t sure what to expect for Vegan foods. After finding out that non-dairy milk was not easy to find everywhere, we took our own small box of SILK almond and soy milk cartons. My motto is that it’s always better to pack more food and leave it there than to not have enough. Lucky for me, both my kids eat Gujarati food, as long as it’s not spicy. So food really wasn’t much of an issue for the kids.
In the cities I visited, most of our family and friends (and restaurants we dined at) were not that familiar with vegansim or the ethical impacts of consuming dairy. So at times, it was a bit difficult to explain my stance. In the end, I’m not sure if they fully understood, but they were all very supportive and would make me fresh roti without ghee, or to omit the ghee or butter in the home-cooked food when possible, and wouldn’t feel bad when I didn’t take any sweets (most have milk or ghee). Overall it was great, but looking forward to visiting some of the larger cities such as Mumbai where there is more awareness of veganism. I’ve even been told that there are several plant-based restaurants there! 🙂
This trip was the first I’ve been on where I haven’t gotten sick!! You may think it’s silly, but every time I’ve gone to India, I usually fall sick from something I eat, since my stomach is not used to the local food or water. Against my desires, we also always try to avoid a lot of street food like pani puri or soups, or raw food. We also always avoid drinking or using the tap water there and stick to boiled/cooled water, filtered water, or bottled water from the pharmacies. In fact, many of the homes now have a filtering system installed for their drinking water.
Before I left, I was contacted by a company called Test Assured Water Testing Kits & Supplies! Talk about PERFECT timing because we were leaving for India and the at-home water test kits were perfect to take along to see the differences between the tap water and filtered bottled water we were drinking! The kits are perfect for travel since they are super light-weight and small. They include all 10 of their water tests to check the water. The tests are VERY easy to administer (in fact, even my 6 year old helped me with the control sample at home), and gives you results of all but one within 10 minutes. Each kit includes the following tests: Lead, Pesticide, Iron, Copper, Alkalinity, pH, Hardness, Chlorine, Nitrates & Nitrites, & Bacteria. Can you tell with my Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering nerdy background that I’m giddy with joy and excitement?!?
I did three water tests…filtered water in San Diego, un-filtered tap water in India, bottled filtered water in India. The tap-water was from Vadodara, a fairly large city in the state of Gujarat, and came from a well-established home. I tested everything mentioned above (used 3 kits total). The Lead, Bacteria, and Pesticides came back negative, even in the un-filtered tap water from India which was great to know. To my relief, the results of the filtered water in San Diego and India were both almost identical and well within Federal Water Limits (a sheet which is included in the test kits for reference). I had heard from several people that unless you purchase your bottled water from pharmacies in India, there’s no guarantee that it’s actually “filtered water”. Many companies in India are known to simply re-fill the water bottles with tap water, re-seal, and sell them as “filtered” water. The brand of water that we purchased in India was Bailley. 
According to the kits, the main issues with the Un-Filtered Tap Water from India was the Hardness, pH, and alkalinity. The hardness of the tap-water was 300 ppm (federal water limits, <50 ppm), the pH was 9 (federal water limits, 6.5-8.5), and the alkalinity was 240 ppm. This is exactly what I expected since it’s a hard water source. Next time, I’m curious as to what the results would look like in more rural areas or smaller villages.
Overall our trip was fantastic! Aside from dealing with the hyper-ness of my own two monkeys, I really couldn’t have asked for a more perfect first trip to India for the kids! Although we won’t be visiting nearly as frequently as I did when we were younger, I’m hoping to take them again in the future.
We planned ahead of time and hung up lights, put up our Christmas tree, and decorated the house for the holidays before we left for India in November. So it felt great coming back to a festive house full of holiday spirit, and a warm and cozy bed. We love traveling, but there’s nothing like being HOME during the holidays! So turn your oven on and make this Vegan Lasagna Recipe with Roasted Vegetables & Garlic Herb Ricotta. There’s nothing more that screams comfort food over the holidays than a 9×13″ baked vegan lasagna dish!
Vegan Lasagna Recipe with Roasted Veggies & Garlic Herb Ricotta
INGREDIENTS
- 12 Tinkyada Brown Rice Lasagna Sheets , or any lasagna sheets
- Garlic Basil Vegan Ricotta
- 26 oz. Marinara Sauce , or more
- balsamic vinegar , for garnish
- fresh basil , finely chopped (for garnish)
- olive oil
- freshly ground black pepper
- salt
For the Roasted Veggies:
- 20 cremini mushrooms , sliced
- 2 green bell peppers , thinly sliced and halved
- 2 red bell pepper , thinly sliced and halved
- 1 medium-large onion , thinly sliced and quartered
For the Italian Breadcrumbs:
- 1 1/4 cups plain breadcrumbs , or gluten-free breadcrumbs
- 2/3 teasp salt
- 1/4 teasp onion powder
- 1/3 teasp garlic powder
- 1/3 teasp italian seasoning , or just dried oregano
INSTRUCTIONS
To Prepare Roasted Veggies:
- Pre-heat the oven 450 degrees. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Combine all the sliced veggies (mushrooms, bell peppers, onions) in a mixing bowl. Toss with 2-3 teasp olive oil and season with salt.
- Add the veggies onto the lined baking tray and spread out evenly.
- Bake in the oven for 15-25 minutes until the veggies are roasted and just slightly charred (be careful not to burn them). You may need to toss the veggies once in between to keep from burning. Once they are done, remove and set aside.
To Prepare the Lasagna:
- While the veggies are roasting, heat a large pot of water to boiling. Add a little salt and olive oil to the water.
- Once boiling, reduce heat to maintain a gentle boil and add the lasagna sheets. Depending on the type of pasta you are using, follow the directions on the box and cook the sheets till very al dente (be sure not to over cook since you will continue to cook the pasta later when it's baking in the oven). Stir often to prevent from sticking.
- When ready, drain in a colander and rinse with cool water, gently separating any noodles that may be sticking together.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees.
- Use a 9x13" glass baking dish. Spread a layer of marinara sauce at the bottom of the dish.
- Arrange one layer of lasagna noodles lengthwise (about 3 long noodles, edge may overlap, depending on your pan) over the sauce. Spread a layer of the Garlic Basil Vegan Ricotta over the lasagna noodles. Top with a generous layer of marinara sauce. followed by a layer of roasted veggies.
- Repeat the above step TWICE for two more layers of lasagna noodles lengthwise, followed by the vegan ricotta, a generous layer of marinara sauce, and some roasted veggies.
- Finish with another layer of noodles (using about 12 sheets total). Spread the remaining sauce over the top layer of noodles.
- Seal the baking dish with foil and bake in the oven at 375 degrees for about 15-20 minutes until heated through.
- While the lasagna is baking, prepare the breadcrumbs by combining all the ingredients for Italian Breadcrumbs above into a mixing bowl. Add a tiny amount of olive oil and mix once more. Set aside.
- Remove the foil, top the lasagna with a generous layer of the prepared Italian seasoned breadcrumbs (note that you do not need to use all of the amount prepared).
- Bake once again, UN-COVERED, for another 15 minutes or until the breadcrumbs are golden brown in color.
- Remove the lasagna from the oven, top with finely chopped fresh basil and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar (use a spoon for this to avoid large amounts).
- (optional) Top with freshly ground black pepper and red crushed pepper for some added spice.
- Serve the lasagna with a side salad or some home-made garlic bread! Store any extra covered in the fridge and simply reheat in the microwave when needed.
Rashmi Asharam-Ranchod
Oh Anjali, I am a sucker for Italian food and this lasagne is so up my alley.
Its pure comfort food and definitely food for the soul and I love the layers, so yummy!
Your trip to India looked amazing, I enjoyed checking what you were up too on instastories.
I love India with its different culture and food. When we went back in 2010, we also avoided all the street food and the tap water, but my sister and I still ended up getting sick, but I guess our bodies were also not used to their style and way of cooking.
The water testing kits sounds like a brilliant idea and talk about perfect timing 🙂
Lastly, home is definitely where the heart is, I love travelling but I always miss my bed and my routine – (am I crazy?)
anjali
Yeah I also typically always end up getting sick from something or another (usually my stomach is upset), but this was a first for me in terms of not getting sick! I was so happy too since my kids were with me. I think it may have been because we were there for such a short time. The water tests were awesome, especially since i’ve always been curious. And NO YOU ARE NOT CRAZY or we are crazy together ha! I so missed my bed and routine!
Reshana
Welcome home Anjali…
Firstly I am sitting at home and craving a pasta dish! I have been messaging my sister telling her that haha… This looks so delicious and comforting! Perfect for the way i feel right now 🙂
Wow! India was my first international holiday back in 2010 and I loved it.. I only visited Mumbai but it was truly an experience that I will treasure forever… I am hoping to visit again but this time, the Taj Mahal and some temples etc. India is truly a special place to me that i hold very close to my heart! I am so glad your kids loved it and I am glad you didnt fall ill. I did haha when i was there but i guess it was just a change of foods, climate and scenery!
This water kit looks so cool and awesome by the way and it actually works! 🙂
I have to agree on that one… we can travel to the ends of the world but HOME is where the HEART is <3
anjali
Hopefully you made some pasta after this post! We visited all the tourist places when we were young with my parents, so it’s been awhile. I’d love to take the kids back and go everywhere again, but probably when they’re a little older so they actually understand what they are seeing. It was the perfect first trip with the kids =) Yes! Loved taking the water testing kits with me….they are awesome! Great trip but glad to be home =)
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit
I have been waiting for a little trip recap, it sounds like such an exciting, crazy, fun-filled time! I totally agree with the childhood trips–even if they are too young to really grasp it all I have so many amazing memories from the trips my parents took me on as a little kid. And oh how I would love to try some of those local fruits 🙂 So happy you didn’t get sick this time around too, that’s fantastic. Now about this beautiful lasagna–it looks indeed PERFECT!! I love the addition of all the veggies in those layers, especially the mushrooms. So funny that you come back craving Italian food lol. Absolutely delicious, and quite holiday color appropriate really 🙂
anjali
You’re so right…although you don’t get the same appreciation as a child, those memories are priceless! Oh the things you would probably do with those local fruits =) I couldn’t have any of the italian dishes there so i was craving some good ol fashion baked pasta dish ha! Thanks so much Natalie!
Kristine
I’m not a huge meat eater and this lasagna sounds incredible. Thanks for the recipe!
anjali
You’ll love it, especially the ricotta!
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine
I’m glad you had such a great time (and yay for water kits!) We are currently having our water tested at home (we have a well and we have some major water problems 😛 )
And lasagna is always such a cozy crowd-pleaser! Yum!
anjali
Oh no so sorry you’ve been having major water problems! these kits would be PERFECT for you to have on hand for quick tests just to be safe. They’re so easy to run!
Suchi @elegantmeraki
Pasta is my favorite weeknight meal. These look delicious! I have never tried vegan cheese, something i should soon.
anjali
oh this vegan ricotta is amazing…you won’t even realize it’s vegan once you try it!
Jovita @ Yummy Addiction
I am not vegan but this lasagna looks incredible! I am bookmarking and surely making it sooner or later!
anjali
Thanks Jovita!! Let me know if you try it out!
Luci {Luci's Morsels}
I’m attending a potluck party this week with a strict vegan and I’ve been wracking my brain about what to bring. This vegan lasagna is perfect! I would also add some vegan Daiya cheese to the ricotta for extra “cheesy” flavor.
anjali
This recipe is perfect for you! I also have a post on 30 bite-size vegan party foods that would be great to take as well! And yes…as mentioned in the notes, vegan daiya or mioyoko fresh mozz are two things you could easily add to make them extra cheesy! Lete me know if you try it out!
Amanda
I’ve never seen brown rice lasagna sheets. I need these! Your travel adventures are so interesting! I’ve only spent a lot of time in Mexico (not the touristy places), and Peru. I’d love to see other countries and learn some native dishes.
anjali
The brown rice lasagna sheets are awesome! I also use Explore Cuisine green lentil lasagna sheets sometimes! Traveling to different countries is such a great experience…hoping to take the kids around the world more once they’re a little older. Peru is on my list!
Sophia | Veggies Don't Bite
Sounds like you had a great time! I bet its awesome to be back home though. And lasagna is such great comfort food, my family loves it when I make it!
anjali
Yes…had an amazing time but was definitely glad to be back home for the holidays!
Augustus
This looks really delicious, and I intend to try it out soonest. I hope I won’t ruin it with my poor cooking skills.
Thanks for sharing Anjali.
anjali
Thanks! It’s super easy…especially the ricotta. You’ll love it, let me know how it goes!
Karla
This is not truly vegan! It is vegetarian. The vegans use no animal products, therefore the ricotta is not vegan!
anjali
Thanks so much for the concern, but I’ve been vegan for the past 4 years now and am well aware that means no animal products. If you had checked out the recipe, you would have seen that it uses my “vegan garlic herb ricotta” recipe that is TOFU-based and delicious. So yes…this recipe is vegan.
KareninStLouis
We had the lasagna for dinner—-so good!! Also thrilled with the vegan ricotta “cheese” spread. I used a 100% whole wheat lasagna noodle. I added a few more veggies to the lasagna: broccoli, cauliflower, leeks, and spinach (and omitted the ‘shrooms). Yum. Beautiful, too.
anjali
So great to hear!! Thank you for the great review! That ricotta is a fav of ours we use it on everything!
Wilmarie
How much is a serving?
anjali
The recipe makes one 9×13 glass baking dish. The serving size is 12, so it’s about a 3×3 piece of lasagna.
Ollie
What could I substitute the mushrooms with?
anjali
You can easily leave out the mushrooms and stick with onions and bell peppers!
Babsyblue
Thank you for posting this recipe. It is awesome, absolutely awesome. I am relatively new to choosing a vegan diet and this recipe helps confirm I am doing the right thing. In fact I am beginning to think that a meat based diet is the diet that deprives people of a wonderful world of delicious dishes,in spite of what we have been brought up to believe!! And I’m feeling a whole lot lighter too.
Our local store did not carry the rice noodles, so I made it with the wholewheat. When I made this I divided the recipe it half and made two smaller dishes. I gave one to our neighbors in appreciation for them snow blowing out our driveway while we were out of town. They said it was really good and they enjoyed it. It is pretty funny because hubby who has somehow decided that vegan is very anti what he is ( whatever that is), liked it a lot too.
The ricotta sauce is amazing too. I am going to make this again and I think double up on the ricotta sauce, make the dish even creamier between the layers. Can’t go wrong there!
Thanks again so much !!!
anjali
What a lovely review….thank you so much! So great that you guys all loved the dish…the ricotta is honestly so versatile. I’ve even just used it as a dip! And yes…I love that a plant-based diet has you thinking out of the box, using all the fruits and veggies to create wholesome delicious meals! If you ever need more inspiration, looking for a certain recipe, don’t hesitate to email me! Thank you!
Colleen
Can you make it up ahead of time,and freeze it? Til your going to cook it?
anjali
If you’re pre-boiling the noodles, yes! Simply assemble and freeze, and then bake when you’re ready!
Renee
I love using Tinkyada Brown Rice Pasta the taste is amazing and my picky boys cant tell the difference from semolina pasta which they love. I do have one question regarding cooking time. No matter how careful I am not to over cook, more often than not I usually do. Do you have a majic number on the cooking time?! As I’m sure you know with any gluten free pasta if you overcook, it just falls apart. I would love to make this lasagna for Christmas dinner but I’m afraid the sheets of pasta wont be sheets after I get a hold of them (and I do run the pasta under cold water after boiling to stop the cooking process) I would like any advice you can offer 🙂
anjali
Hi there! So I use certain Tinkyada brown rice pasta often, and have tried the lasagna noodles a few times. I’ve had similar problems to you, and to avoid them breaking down, I’ve tried to under cook them al-dente, assemble the lasagna, and then bake just the minimal time until the cheese is melted and lasagna is heated through. Depending on the amount of sauce, etc. I’ve unfortunately had similar outcomes to you and sometimes it turns out perfect. ALL THAT BEING SAID…I no longer use the Tinkyada lasagna sheets, and instead LOVE the Explore Cuisine Green Lentil Lasagna Sheets! They are gluten-free, no-boil, healthy, protein packed, and comes out absolutely PERFECT everytime! We are not gluten-free, but everyone loves these and texture is the same as semolina pasta! And the best part is that you don’t have to pre-boil the lasagna noodles. Just assemble uncooked, being sure to add enough sauce between each layer, cover with foil, and bake according to the time on the box! I make lasagna all the time using these and they turn out perfect. So give them a try. You can find them on amazon, online, or at SPROUTS! I’m actually making lasagna with them tonight! 🙂 Let me know if you try it and what you think!
Anna Von Rossum
I made this vegan lasagna (I also made it gluten-free) with no expectations and it blew my mind!!! This really is just as good as the non-vegan gluten-full version. The tofu ricotta really does give the same creamy taste and consistency as ricotta. So happy I found your recipe!!
anjali
You made my day with all your recipe reviews…again thank you so much! So glad you loved the ricotta and the lasagna recipe! If you haven’t tried them yet, the explore cuisine green lentil lasagna sheets are GF and awesome!