Pumpkin Kalamata Kale Lasagna

I love lasagna. It’s really one of my very favorite foods, but I don’t take the time to make it very often. I always hope that someone will make it for me 🙂 .  But it’s been a very long time, so I wanted to make some and add a new spin on it. Since it’s fall/winter and pumpkin is all around, that seemed like a good addition (and I feel a new spring lasagna coming in a few months!).

Making lasagna is definitely a long process, in terms of preparing all of the layers, but that also really appeals to my organized side. I am a Virgo after all 🙂 .  It’s very satisfying to me to prep all of the ingredients, and prepare them to be layered in the baking dish. I think that’s also one reason that I love making wraps and spring rolls, that sense of order that goes into making them.

This came out beautifully layered, with lots of different flavors.

Pumpkin Kalamata Kale Lasagna

• 1 package whole wheat lasagna noodles
• 1 jar pasta sauce (or tomato sauce)
• 2 cups vegan cheese (store bought or make your own here)
• 1 cup kalamata olives, quartered
• 2 cups pureed pumpkin
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil (divided)
• 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 bunch kale, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced (divided)
• 1 tablespoon ginger, minced
• 1 package extra firm tofu (sprouted if possible), crumbled
• 1 bunch parsley, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Prepare the layers:

– Heat 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil in a pan. Sauté the onion until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the pumpkin, cayenne and smoked paprika and heat through. Set aside.

– Heat the remaining tablespoon grapeseed oil and sauté 2 cloves of garlic and the ginger for about 2 minutes, then add the kale. Saute for a few minutes, until the kale is bright green and slightly softened. Stir in half of the pasta sauce and set aside.

– In a bowl, mix together the tofu, parsley, nutritional yeast, 1 clove garlic and salt. Set aside.

Cook the noodles according to package directions and drain. Then it’s time to layer. In a deep baking dish spread a couple of tablespoons of pasta sauce so the noodles don’t stick. Then:

– Place 3 noodles side by side in the dish. Top with the kale mixture and half of the vegan cheese.

– Add another layer of noodles, then the tofu mixture and top with the olives.

– Add another layer of noodles, then the pumpkin mixture.

– Top with the final 3 noodles, then add the remaining sauce and vegan cheese.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes, until the cheese on top is melted and the edges of the lasagna are bubbling. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.