Deep Dish Lasagna

For the Sauce

1 box regular, ruffled-edge lasagna noodles

1 tablespoon olive oil, optional

1 large onion, finely chopped, about 1 cup

2 teaspoons salt, divided

4 large cloves garlic, minced

20 ounces button mushrooms, very finely chopped or pulsed in food processor

2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon dried basil

1 tablespoon fennel seeds

1 ½ cups cooked farro or other chewy grain

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

2 (15-ounce) cans tomato sauce

1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste

1 tablespoon sugar or maple syrup

For the Tofu Ricotta

32 ounces firm tofu (2 packages), drained, rinsed, and pressed for about 15 minutes to remove excess water

½ cup nutritional yeast

2 tablespoons onion powder

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons olive oil, optional

1 ½ teaspoons salt

For the Assembly

16 slices vegan mozzarella or provolone cheese

2 cups shredded vegan mozzarella cheese

To prepare the noodles, bring a kettle or large pot of water to a boil. Arrange noodles in a 9-inch by 13-inch baking dish or casserole. Pour the boiling water over the noodles and let sit to soften.

To make the sauce, heat the oil over medium-high heat in a Dutch oven or large pot. Add the onion and a teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, until the onions start to soften and release their water. Add the chopped mushrooms and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes or until the mushrooms have released their water and it has started to evaporate. Add soy sauce, oregano, basil, fennel, and pepper. Stir and continue to cook until the mixture starts to dry out. Add cooked farro, crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and sugar/maple syrup. Taste and add remaining salt. Simmer, uncovered, for about 20 minutes

To make the ricotta, use your hands to finely crumble tofu in a medium bowl. Add nutritional yeast, onion powder, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. Mix until well combined.

To assemble the lasagna, ladle several spoonfuls of sauce into the bottom of the lasagna dish. Arrange 5 noodles, overlapping in the dish. Spoon about ⅓ of the ricotta over the noodles and spread evenly. Break sliced cheese into pieces and arrange over the ricotta. Ladle more sauce over the cheese. Repeat three more times. The final layer should be noodles, sauce, and shredded mozzarella cheese.

Cover the dish with foil and bake for about 1 hour. Remove foil during the last 15 minutes of baking. Remove lasagna from the oven and let rest for about 15 minutes before slicing and serving. Serve with any leftover sauce. Store leftovers in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

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