This recipe for vegan roasted garlic bread is made with fresh roasted garlic and creamy vegan butter. I love using roasted garlic over regular ol’ minced garlic for my garlic bread recipe because it’s so buttery smooth and has a richer, more robust flavor.
This recipe for vegan lasagna soup is sure to warm you up this winter. Last week, we had over a foot of snow here in Colorado and heating up this soup was the perfect comfort food.
As far back as I can remember, lasagna has been one of my favorite dishes. Like, last meal type favorite.
So when the thought of making it into a soup came up, I had to jump on it. If you really think about it, you can sort of make dish into a soup and it’s just as delicious!
It’s warm, hearty, savory and comes together fast. The best part about it is the creamy, garlicky, cashew ricotta cheese.
And of course the crimpy lasagna noodles! So good.
Not only does this recipe use delicious fire roasted tomatoes but we also browned up some of our favorite vegan Italian sausage and tossed that in as well.
We love using this recipe for TVP sausage crumbles but we also like to use the Field Roast Italian, too. I tried the Tofurky Italian sausage for this recipe too but I wasn’t a fan.
If you’re tired of using paper towels and/or dish towels to press your tofu, invest in this Tofuture Tofu Press!
I hope you enjoy this vegan lasagna soup recipe as much as I did. It comes together so quickly that it has become a typical weeknight meal.
Sometimes I’ll make this with other types of macaroni and it comes out just as yummy.
If you try this recipe, please feel free to comment below or tag us on instagram @pastabased or Facebook @pastabased.
Vegan sausage crumbles, vegetable broth, fire roasted tomatoes, italian seasonings. Topped with vegan cashew and tofu ricotta cheese. Served warm with lasagna noodles and fresh parsley.
Heat olive oil on medium heat in a large pot. Add onion and garlic, sauté until soft and fragrant. Add tomato paste and Italian seasonings. Stir until combined and covering the onions, heat for about one minute.
Add fire roasted tomatoes and vegetable broth. Stir to combine, bring to a simmer and heat for about 20-30 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add lasagna noodles and cook until al dente, according to package direction. Drain noodles and rinse with cold water. Coat noodles with olive oil to prevent sticking. Set aside until ready to serve.
Use the quick-soak method to soak your cashews. Drain and add to a food processor or high-speed blender.
Use a tofu press to press the tofu. Once drained, add half the block to the food processor.
Add nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon juice, basil leaves, parsley, salt, and almond milk to the food processor. Process on high until smooth and creamy. Add more plant milk, a tablespoon at a time, if it's too thick or to your desired consistency.
This Vegan Lasagna Bowl recipe is basically a lasagna… in a bowl! Who would have thunk that? Ha! It’s everything that you love about lasagna – the meaty sauce, the ricotta cheese, and the wavy noodles, without all the baking time.
This recipe for Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce is made with aromatic, sweet oven-roasted red peppers, roasted garlic, cashews, and shallots. It’s bursting with flavor because of the addition of herby fresh basil leaves and a splash of lemon juice.
Adding vegetable broth makes the sauce the perfect creamy texture to smother on top of your favorite pasta. Make this sauce for a wholesome and vibrant pasta dinner.
Find the recipe for this Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce below. Leave a comment if you make this or tag us on instagram @pastabased!
Creamy vegan pasta sauce made from roasted red bell peppers. A great alternative to tomato-based sauces. Easy and simple recipe perfect for any kind of pasta.
Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). Slice red bell peppers in half lengthwise and remove stems, seeds, and membranes. Place cut side down on a baking sheet and brush with olive oil. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Add whole garlic cloves, chopped shallot, and cashews to the baking sheet. Bake for an additional 10 minutes.
Once the red bell peppers are finished roasting, remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer the peppers into a heat-safe bowl. Cover the bowl with a clean towel and set aside until the peppers are cool enough to handle. Once cool, peel off the skins and discard them.
In a blender, add roasted red bell peppers, garlic cloves, shallot, cashews, basil leaves, vegetable broth, and lemon juice. Blend until well combined and creamy.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add preferred pasta and cook based on package instructions. Drain and set aside.
Heat blended red pepper sauce in a saucepan over medium heat. Combine with cooked pasta. Serve warm. Top with vegan parmesan and red pepper flakes. To store, cool and refrigerate for up to a week.
This recipe for Vegan Chicken Francese is made with bite-sized pieces of delicious vegan buttermilk battered tofu. The tofu is lightly fried and then tossed in a tart but creamy vegan lemon-butter sauce.
Growing up, one of my favorite recipes from my mom was her chicken francese. If you’re not familiar with chicken francese, it’s chicken cutlets that are dredged in flour and fried in a lemon-butter sauce.
This recipe for Vegan Chicken Francese uses extra-firm tofu as a substitute for the chicken in my mom’s recipe. It’s surprisingly easy to make and comes together quick.
This recipe was so much fun to create because of how close it came to the flavors I was looking for. Francese sauce is a buttery lemon sauce and can be found on the menu at most Italian restaurants. This vegan chicken francese recipe is made with extra-firm tofu. It’s surprisingly easy to make and comes together quick.
If you like tart lemon sauce then this is the perfect recipe for you! I personally LOVE lemon flavor.
Disclaimer: this recipe is SUPER tart and lemony – I love it! but if you’re not sure, you may want to start with a bit less lemon and add more to your liking.
Make sure to use extra-firm tofu and press out as much moisture as you can.
This allows the tofu to stay together and not crumble as easily when you’re marinating it or frying it. We use this tofu press by Tofuture to make the process a little bit easier.
You can also wrap the tofu block in paper towels and balance a few books or pans on top.
You’ll need to change the paper towels a few times to make sure most of the moisture gets absorbed.
When pan-frying the tofu, make sure that the oil is hot enough before adding the tofu. You want to prevent the tofu from sticking and sometimes it may stick if the pan isn’t hot enough.
Always use an oil that has a high smoke point (above 375°F) such as vegetable oil, refined coconut oil, refined light olive oil, or refined avocado oil.
Try one piece first to see if the oil is a good temperature, you also want to be sure it doesn’t burn. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll be frying up tofu like there’s no tomorrow.
You can — but it won’t be quite as delicious. We did a test batch of tofu baked instead of fried, but we ultimately decided the fried version was better.
The tofu browns a lot nicer when fried, and there is more flavor. However, you can still bake the tofu if that’s what you prefer.
We baked the tofu at 400°F (200°C) for around 20-25 minutes (until they were firm and crispy). Add parchment paper to ensure they don’t stick to the baking sheet.
White or Brown Rice – Growing up, my mom would always serve this dish with white rice. The rice absorbs the lemony sauce creating something almost like a risotto.
Pasta – And of course another amazing pair for this Tofu Francese recipe is PASTA! I love to use a spaghetti with this dish, but I’m farfalle, orrechiette, or penne would go very well too.
Roasted Asparagus – Asparagus always goes well with lemon. Roast some in your oven and serve the vegan tofu francese together. Another good roasted veggie to use here is brussels sprouts.
Don’t forget the garnish! Garnish with fresh parsley, cracked black pepper, and vegan parmesan cheese.
Vegan Chicken Francese. Bite-sized pieces of delicious vegan buttermilk battered tofu, lightly fried and tossed in a creamy and tart lemon-butter sauce.
Press the moisture out of the tofu block with a tofu press for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together almond milk and lemon juice. Let sit for 10 minutes to create a buttermilk.
Drain and slice tofu into one-inch chunks. Add tofu chunks to buttermilk and gently coat. Marinade for 10 minutes.
In a large bowl, mix flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Drain excess buttermilk from the tofu. Add tofu into flour mixture and stir gently to coat.
In a large saucepan, heat vegetable oil over medium heat. When oil is hot, add tofu chunks in one layer without overcrowding the pan. Gently fry and turn each side of the tofu chunks until browned around each side. Line a plate with paper towels and transfer each tofu piece once ready to absorb any excess oil.
In a large saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil on medium-high heat. Mince 3 cloves garlic and add to oil, sautéing until browned. Add 2 tablespoons flour and stir for a minute. Add vegetable broth and whisk to combine, breaking up any chunky flour pieces.
Add lemon juice and whisk to combine. Turn up the heat until the sauce starts bubbling and comes to a low boil. Stir for about 2 minutes, until the sauce starts getting thicker.
Remove saucepan from heat and add 2 tablespoons vegan butter. Mix to melt the butter. Add tofu chunks into the sauce to warm up before serving. Serve over pasta or rice and garnish with fresh parsley.
This recipe for nut free vegan pesto is packed with fresh basil, garlic, and sunflower seeds.
It’s creamy with the perfect texture for pasta, pizza, bread, and more.
This nut free vegan pesto recipe is dairy free, nut free, and so easy to make. You can use your blender or your food processor.
Use a spatula to wipe down the edges as you blend so that you get an even blend.
If you’re looking for a good food processor to buy that’s not crazy expensive, here’s the one we use. This white Cuisinart 7 cup food processor really does the trick for everything we need!
Pro-tip: if you’re using this sauce for pasta, save some of the pasta water after boiling the macaroni. You can use the starchy pasta water to loosen up the pesto sauce so that it coats your pasta better.
Add all ingredients to a food processor or blender. Blend until creamy.
