Monday, August 5, 2013

Clean Eating's No-Bake Zucchini Lasagna (Gluten Free and Vegan)


When I first saw this recipe for zucchini lasagna in the March 2013 issue of Clean Eating Magazine, I thought it was....well.... cooked. After all, why would it be raw? That just didn't make sense to me.  I quickly scanned the recipe and noticed there was zero heat involved.....and indeed it was a raw lasagna (well, not all the ingredients are technically "raw", I suppose, ex: the nutritional yeast).  I showed Nick the recipe and he cringed.  That's fine, he's pretty great at trying most of the things I make, but this recipe just wasn't calling his name (plus anything with nutritional yeast in it is an automatic "no, no" for him).  I'm typically a fan of eating things really hot so to be honest I was hesitant about this recipe for a while myself, but let me tell you, I am so glad I ended up making it.  It was amazing!


No-Bake Zucchini Lasagna 
Vegan, Gluten-Free
Serves 4

Ingredients
1 cup salted cashews **
1 clove garlic, chopped **
1/8 cup fresh lemon juice

1.5 cups cherry or grape tomatoes
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 Medjool date, pitted **
1/2 tsp ground oregano
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. dried rosemary

3 to 4 zucchini, trimmed, halved crosswise and thinly sliced lengthwise
2 to 3 beefsteak tomatoes, thinly sliced widthwise
1/4 cup pitted black olives
2 Tbsp. nutritional yeast

Directions
1.  Prepare the "cheese" first.  In a small food processor or powerful blender combine the cashews, garlic and salt; process into a fine powder.  Add the lemon juice and 1/8 cup water to process until thick and creamy (**Note, if you use peanuts this may not blend quite as well.  My "cheese" was a bit chunky, but still very tasty when eaten together with the rest of the ingredients in this recipe!)

2.  Prepare the sauce in a blender by combining all the sauce ingredients; tomatoes, EVOO, date, oregano, salt and rosemary.

3.  Just before serving, arrange the lasagna on individual serving plates: Spread half of the zucchini over bottom, followed by half the tomatoes, "cheese", sauce and olives.  Repeat with remaining half ingredients, dividing evenly.  Sprinkle nutritional yeast over each serving. Enjoy!



**NOTE:  If you are following a low FODMAPS use peanuts instead of cashews, and use garlic or tuscan-infused olive oil instead of plain olive oil (and omit the garlic).  Also, keep in mind that dates contain FODMAPs, but the one date in this recipe shouldn't cause any problems.

Estimated Nutrition Facts for 1-serving
Source: CalorieCount.com


Nutrition Highlights:  Good source of fiber, protein, and vitamin A, excellent source of vitamin C and iron.




I'm sure you're wondering how the heck I cut into this bad boy.




With a sharp knife, and fork, of course.
And yes, it was messy. Juices flowing everywhere.
But the flavor?  It was worth every messy bite.




Maybe this whole raw thing isn't so bad after all.




QUESTION:  Have you ever had an uncooked lasagna (or any other food that is typically eaten cooked/hot)?



Thanks for reading!

The Candid Rd







9 comments :

  1. this is an interesting concept and probably the boyfriend will think I m crazy but sounds refreshingly good.

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  2. Wow, I never would have thought to make this (and Peter would give this an automatic "no", too), but I actually love the idea of making "cheese" from cashews and nutritional yeast. Did Nick try it?

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    1. Nope, he sure didn't! The NY scared him away. That name is just too weird....

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  3. I would love to try this, but not sure my own significant other would try it, so I'll probably make it for lunch. Just curious...did Nick try it???

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    1. haha, NOPE! Anything that contains nutritional yeast is an automatic no no for him. It's a shame too, because I really think he would have liked it (although, he doesn't like black olives either...).

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  4. So happy to discover your blog. My boyfriend and I are on a cleanse today. Mostly liquids and raw salads. We do this twice a week together. This looks like an amazing "clean eating" dish I would love to try! And hell, no bake, that's even better for anyone without an oven or don't want to be near that during a heat wave! :)

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  5. I can't imagine how this would taste. It looks really pretty. But I'll have to try it - I love Clean Eating and most raw veggies...and nutritional yeast (so good!).

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  6. This sounds super fresh. I'd also be hesitant not to cook the zucchini first too. Love nutritional yeast though!

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  7. I love "cashew cheese" and make it quite often. I just pinned this recipe; it sounds great. I used to make quite a few raw zucchini noodles with different sauces. Need to get my spiralizer out again!

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