The Best Vegan Lasagna

Begin by slicing the eggplant into round slices 1/8 of 1 inch thick. Lay the slices out on a paper towel, and salt them generously on both sides (about a Tablespoon of salt). Don't worry about using too much salt as you will wash it all off in 30 minutes once the eggplant has had time to sweat and become tender.

Pre-heat the oven to 400 F.

Move on to the marinara sauce. Pre-heat a heavy pot over medium-high. Then add a teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil and allow it to warm for a minute before adding the diced onion. Sautee the onion for 5 minutes. Then add 2 Tablespoons of minced garlic and sautee for another 3 minutes. Add 1 Tablespoon dry oregano, 2 Tablespoon fresh rosemary, and 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme. Sautee 2 more minutes. Add 2 cups of vegetable broth (or 2 vegetable bullion cubes and 2 cups water), 1 cup of dry red lentils, 3 14 oz cans of diced, fire-roasted tomatoes, and 2 Tablespoons of fresh chopped basil. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium/low. Allow the sauce to simmer for about one hour.

Now prepare the hummus layer. Add 2 1/4 cups hummus and 3/4 cup water. Whisk together and set aside.

Next, prepare the vegetable layer. Dice 2 colored bell peppers. Rinse the eggplant and dice it. Then heat a large skillet over medium/high; add 1 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil; and add the bell peppers, diced eggplant, and 1 Tablespoon of diced garlic. Allow the vegetables to sautee for 5 minutes. Add 2 Tablespoons of fresh basil, turn the heat to high, and sautee another 3-5 minutes. When the vegetables are well sauteed and slightly browned, stir in 1 cup of chopped kale to wilt it slightly. Turn off the heat.

Return to the red lentil marinara sauce, and give it a taste. When the lentils are soft and mushy (about one hour), mix in about 25 chopped kalamata olives. Remove the sauce from the heat.

Begin layering the lasagna in a large cassarole dish. Add half the tomato sauce; half the vegetable mixture; one third of the hummus mixture; and 4 sheets of green lentil lasagna. Then repeat the layers. Reserve 1/3 of the hummus for later. Then (trust me on this) pour 1/2 cup of water gently over the top of the lasagna. Place foil over the dish and place the dish in the oven. Bake for 60 minutes. The extra water will help keep the lasagna perfectly moist, and the foil will help retain all that moisture.

After 60 minutes, remove the dish from the oven and remove the foil. Drizzle the remaining hummus mixture over the lasagna and sprinkle the top with 10 halved cherry tomatoes, 10 halved kalamata olives, and an additional Tablespoon of chiffonade basil.

Serve and enjoy :)