Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free Lasagna

FINALLY!!! After several weeks of having Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free Lasagna (lasagne?) on my Weekly Menu Plan, I made it! With the help of a friend that works at Whole Foods, I discovered that the store moved all their pastas into one area and my favorite gluten-free lasagne brand (Tinkyada) was now in the mainstream pasta aisle and no longer in the gluten-free aisle. And it was G.O.O.D y'all! I was so tickled, I thought I'd share the loveliness of it here. This is a mix of several different recipes I found online and in my trusty red Betty Crocker cookbook. If you know me, I'm rarely one to follow a recipe to the letter. Either way, I've never made lasagna and it turned out way better than I ever thought it would. (I had N on standby to make sandwiches, but surprisingly didn't need them.)

Anyways, it is VERY hearty, positively DELICIOUS, and even better leftover! (We froze some individual portions for quick meals when I don't feel like cooking.)

Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free Lasagna


Ingredients:

Gluten-free lasagna - cooked to box instructions
1 package Jimmy Dean sausage
2 jars Barilla Pasta Sauce of choice
1 can diced tomatoes
1 small can mushrooms
1 small onion
1/2 cup frozen spinach, thawed
1/2 cup frozen broccoli, thawed
1/2 cup sliced zucchini (I didn't have this last week, but will this week)
1 carton firm tofu
shredded rice cheese


Instructions:

1. Cook pasta per box instructions. Rinse in cool water and set aside.
   
2. Dice onion and brown with sausage in large stockpot.
   
3. Add 2 jars of Barilla pasta sauce, canned tomatoes, and mushrooms, heating through.
   
4. Gently rinse and pat dry tofu. Break up with a fork to the consistency of Ricotta cheese.
   
5. Mix spinach, broccoli, and zucchini in a bowl.
   
6. Place large ladel of warm sauce in bottom of 13x9 casserole dish.
   
7. Place lasagna noodles on top of sauce.
   
8. Layer 1/3 of meat sauce on noodles
   
9. Layer 1/3 of tofu.
   
10. Layer 1/3 mixture of spinach, broccoli, and zucchini.
    
11. Repeat with another layer of noodles, meat sauce, tofu, and vegetables a second time.
    
12. Repeat with another layer of noodles, meat sauce, tofu, and vegetables a third time.
    
13. Finish with a final layer of noodles, meat sauce, and grated rice cheese.
    
14. Bake at 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. Let it rest for 10 minutes before serving.
    

Couple points to consider:

If the thought of cooking with tofu scares you, DON'T let it. It gives the perfect texture of Ricotta or cottage cheese and takes on the flavor of the meat sauce. Even N said it was really good and he's not a tofu type of guy.

If you don't like veggies in your lasagna, just leave them out. I just wanted something really hearty and the veggie mixture was perfect!

Sorry for not having a picture. We excitedly dug in without getting any shots. :-)

For more yummy recipes for the week, check out Gayle's site at Grocery Cart Challenge.