spinach lasagna

Vegan Spinach and Artichoke Lasagna

vegan spinach and artichoke lasagna wth jackfruit

vegan spinach and artichoke lasagna wth jackfruit

I love lasagna. Regular ol saucy, cheesy, vegan meaty lasagna.

Growing up it was not a thing my mom ever made. She grew up on a farm in Alabama so lasagna was never on the menu.

I remember the first time I ever made lasagna I was grown and married and was given a recipe that included a block of Velveeta Cheese. This was pre vegan and clearly mistakes were made. I think my husband ate it, but I am also certain it was just because he was not about to tell his new wife that she had not actually made lasagna but some weird third cousin to lasagna that nobody actually likes. I mean to sum it up, it was gross.

Now days I make a mean lasagna. Its my pot luck, meal train, go to, and I have a whole group of Ukrainian Rabbis that visit our synagogue often that will vouch for it. On their last visit it seems everyone had the same idea to bring them lasagna, but it seems my vegan version was the favorite, and they had no idea it was even vegan!

So deciding to make a spinach and artichoke lasagna was never a thought in my mind. I like marinara sauce…on everything….but my daughter suggested I make it and I decide it might be a welcome change for the rest of the family. It seemed easy enough to whip up a batch of spinach and artichoke dip, add some vegan all purpose cheese and some crunchy panko topping and call it done.

I know that chicken lasagna is a thing so decide to add a can of jackfruit to mimic the texture of chicken and add a boost of healthy fiber to the dish. It worked great but you can skip the jackfruit if you want and just add another can of artichoke hearts as well.

Well, it worked and the kids and husband all loved it. I liked it too. I might not like it more that regular lasagna but it was good for sure and I think 3 out of the 6 of us would choose this one over a traditional lasagna. I have come a long way since that tragic Velveeta lasagna, y’all!

So the next time the Ukrainian Rabbis come to visit I think I will make them this lasagna and see what they think! If they like it, I will know its actually good and my family isn’t just being nice.

INGREDIENTS:

  • I package lasagna noodles

  • 1/4 cup of panko bread crumbs

  • 1/4 cup vegan parmesan cheese, homemade or store bought

  • I/2 batch All Purpose Vegan Cheese sauce

  • 1 container of plain vegan cream cheese, or 8 oz of homemade cream cheese

  • 1 (14 oz) can of artichoke hearts, drained and diced

  • 1 (20 oz) can young green jackfruit in brine

  • 9 oz container of fresh baby spinach

  • 1 small/medium yellow onion, diced

  • 1/4 cup vegan mayo

  • 2 teaspoons of minced garlic

  • juice from 1 lemon

  • 2 teaspoons all purpose seasoning ( I use Trader Joes 21 season salute)

  • 1 teaspoon of salt

  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat eat oven to 350 degrees

  1. Prepare cheese sauce according to instructions. If you can’t or don’t eat cashews you can use the same measurement of sunflower seeds in the recipe. Set aside.

  2. Drain the jackfruit and rinse. You can chop the jackfruit with a knife or shred it between your fingers.

  3. In large skillet add a few teaspoons of oil and add jackfruit and the diced onion. Sauté over medium heat until the onions are translucent. Remove the onion and jackfruit from the pan and place in large bowl. Set aside.

  4. In the same skillet add the spinach with a few teaspoons of water and cook until the spinach has fully wilted. If the spinach will not all fit in the pan, you can add a handful at a time as it will cook down very quickly making room for more. Let the spinach cool completely.

  5. Placed cooled spinach in a clean kitchen towel making a pouch. Using the towel, ring out as much liquid as you can from the spinach.

  6. In the same bowl with the onions and jackfruit, mix the spinach, artichokes, cream cheese, mayo, garlic and seasoning.

  7. In a 9x13 pan, smear about 1/4 cup of the spinach mixture on the bottom of the pan. Next add a layer of uncooked lasagna noodles ( I use regular lasagna noodles, not the no boil kind. They will not need to be boiled.)

  8. Next begin building your lasagna by adding about 1/4 of the spinach mixture over then noodles the evenly spread about 1/4 of the cheese sauce over the spinach. You should be able to get 4 layers of noodles depending on how deep your pan is. You can do 3 layers if you prefer. On the final layer sprinkle the vegan parmesan cheese and panko.

  9. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour on the middle oven rack. If the top begins to brown too quickly, cover with foil unit the last 15 minutes of the bake. Slice and serve.

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