Awesome Paleo Lasagna Recipe
Paleo and gluten-free lasagna recipe made with a meaty Italian sauce, zucchini, and a nut cheese - so close to the taste and texture of a traditional pasta lasagna, i think you'll be amazed!
Ingredients
Main Dish
- 1 lb mild or hot Italian sausage casings removed (we used hot)
- 1/2 lb grass-fed ground beef
- 1/2 cup onion chopped small
- 1 28-oz can San Marzano peeled tomatoes and sauce
- 1 15-oz can of tomato sauce
- 1 6-oz can of tomato paste
- 2 8-oz packages of sliced mushrooms
- 2 10-oz packages of frozen spinach (thawed)
- 4-5 medium-sized zucchini
- 1 1/2 cup of cashews
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 3 cloves of garlic pressed or minced
Seasonings for Lasagna Sauce
- 1 tsp of dried basil
- 1 tsp or dried thyme
- 1 tsp of dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp of salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1-2 Tbsp of fresh chopped parsley leaves
- Optional: Add red pepper flakes as desired
Seasonings for Cashew Cheese
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp dried onion
- 1/4 tsp dried garlic
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- Day before: Soak cashews in water (no need to refrigerate)
- In a large pot, add 2 tsp of olive oil and sauté onion and garlic over medium heat, or until onions are tender
- Add Italian sausage and beef in pot, cook until meat is browned
- Drain fat
- Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste
- Add remaining lasagna sauce spices
- Allow sauce to simmer in pot while continuing below (best if simmered 30 mins to 1 hour)
- In a frying pan with a little olive oil, sauté mushrooms (with any kind of seasonings or parsley if you like)
- Set sautéed mushrooms aside
- Place thawed spinach in bowl, squeeze as much water out of it as possible
- Set spinach aside
- Drain water from the soaking cashews, and pour cashews into a food processor
- Add almond milk and spices to the food processor
- Pulse or blend until cashews become a smooth and creamy consistency (something like ricotta cheese)
- Add 2 cups of the cashew "cheese" into the bowl with spinach and blend together
- Preheat oven to 350º F
- Slice zucchini lengthwise, (first trim two opposite sides so it doesn't roll around on the board) Slice noodles about 1/4-inch thick (works by hand with a knife) don't worry about them all being the exact same thickness
- Get out a 9" x 12" baking dish
- Smooth a little bit of the lasagna sauce along the bottom of the pan
- Place one layer of zucchini noodles lengthwise across the bottom of the pan
- Add about half of cashew cheese and spinach mixture along the top of the zucchini noodles layer
- On top of that, add half of the pan of sautéed mushrooms
- Top with lasagna sauce enough to cover the top (don't skimp, there'll be plenty)
- Repeat the above steps with a second layer of zucchini noodles, cashew cheese and spinach, and again with the sautéed mushrooms and lasanga sauce
- Now bake uncovered for about 50-60 minutes (or until it starts to bubble around the edges)
- Remove from oven, let stand a few minutes, slice and serve