Monday, July 13, 2009

Lasagna

My son is a huge Garfield fan and the worst part of going gluten and dairy free was the idea that lasagna (well pasta) was going to be a thing of the past. Gluten free pasta is pricey and barely edible but a little experimenting and imagination can make a great dish. Out of my brain came this lasagna recipe.

1 box gluten free lasagna noodles (this is more than regular lasagna noodles but so user friendly that they are worth it) - you may need a little extra depending on your pan size
2 boxes of soft tofu (I always use tofu in the "juice box" because they last longer in the cupboard)
1-2 pounds of sausage and/or hamburger
2 jars gluten/dairy free spaghetti sauce - preferrably one not chunky
1 can diced tomatoes

Pour a little of your non-chunky sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 "cake" pan (or about that size). You need just enough to lubricate the bottom of the pan. Cover with a layer of dry noodles. Drain tofu and crumble over the dry noodles until you have a complete layer. Cover with sauce. Add another layer of dry noodles. Brown meat and drain. Add to pan over noodles. Cover with sauce. Add another layer of noodles. Pour remaining sauce over noodles and add can of tomatoes (and juice). Cover with foil and place in oven at 400-450 degrees. Bake 30-45 minutes.
Sometimes we have a problem with the top layer of noodles not getting soft enough. The real solution is to bake a day ahead of time and reheat but we never have that much patience. You can add cheese if you desire. We found that this does not work with non-dairy cheese because it turns into a rubbery mess. We have served with with soy parmesan and nutritional yeast and found that they were not necessary. The lasagna has good flavor and the tofu helps keep the noodles moist and gives extra bulk to the lasagna without adding any extra flavor. My tofu hating son loves this and has often commented that he doesn't mind the tofu in the lasagna.