Vegetarian Lasagna with Meat

In our house, tofu is a four letter word. Duh, but you know what I mean. This recipe, adapted from the Flat Belly Diet Family Cookbook is one the guys  will actually eat and enjoy. I have made it successfully without meat. Usually, I add a pound of ground beef or sausage, mostly because they think the name, vegetarian with meat, is funny.
The pesto sauce is a big part of the success of this recipe - it gives the lasagna a unique, tasty flavor.



Vegetarian Lasagna with Tofu

For the sauce, I use a jar of Ragu rather than making a tomato base sauce.

1 package (12 oz) tofu
6 no-boil lasagna noodles
1/4 cup pesto sauce
4 cups baby spinach
1 cup mozarella cheese, grated

Spray the 8 x 8 baking dish with cooking spray. Place a strainer over the sink and crumble in the tofu, squeezing it dry of excess liquid, set aside. Spread some of the Ragu over the bottom of the pan. Layer the ingredients in this order: 2 noodles, 2 tbsp pesto spread on the dry noodles, half the tofu, 2 cups spinach leaves, (the cooked ground beef if you are adding it), 1/3 cup cheese, Ragu, (salt and pepper if desired). Place the remaining 2 noodles on the top. Cover with Ragu and the remaining cheese. I add a sprinkling of parmesan on top.
Bake at 350, 45 minutes until hot and bubbly.
Remove and let rest 10 minutes before cutting (the waiting is the hardest part of this recipe).