Roasted Vegetable Lasagna with Cashew “Ricotta Cheese"

Ingredients

• Ingredients for ricotta “cheese”
• 2 cups raw cashews
• 1/4 cup of warm water
• 2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• Ingredients for lasagna
• 1 small eggplant, very thinly sliced lengthwise
• 1 zucchini, very thinly sliced lengthwise
• 1 yellow summer squash, very thinly sliced lengthwise
• 1 bell pepper (any color), seeded and cut into large squares
• 1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 cups Ricotta “cheese”
• 1 large omega-3 egg, beaten
• 1⁄2 teaspoon dried oregano
• pinch of freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (15-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

Method

Step 1

Make the ricotta cheese: Soak the cashews in a bowl of hot water for at least 1 hour at room temperature or up to 24 hours in the refrigerator.

Step 2

Drain the cashews and place them in a food processor, along with the olive oil, lemon juice, salt and 1⁄4 cup of water. Process the ingredients until a smooth paste forms; you may need to add a bit more water, depending on how long you soaked the cashews.

Step 3

Preheat the oven to 400°F. In a large bowl, combine the eggplant, zucchini, summer squash and bell pepper with the oil and salt and toss well. Spread the vegetables in a single layer on two baking sheets and roast until they start to brown and caramelize around the edges, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the sheets half-way through the cooking time.

Step 4

Remove the baking sheets from the oven and set them aside to cool. Lower the oven temperature to 350°F. While the vegetables are cooling, whisk together the “cheese,” egg, oregano and black pepper in a medium bowl. Spread one-fourth of the mixture in the bottom of a 9-inch square glass baking dish, then spoon 1⁄2 cup of the crushed tomatoes on top. Cover the tomatoes with a layer of one of the types of vegetables. Continue to layer the remaining “cheese,” tomatoes and vegetables until everything is used up, topping off with the tomatoes.

Step 5

Bake the lasagna for 30 minutes. allow it to cool for 5 minutes before serving. Store any leftover “cheese” in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Nutritional Information

Nutritional analysis per serving: Calories: 440, Fat: 34 g, Saturated Fat: 6 g, Cholesterol: 40 mg, Fiber: 6 g, Protein: 12 g, Carbohydrates: 28 g, Sodium: 512 mg