We love our pasta!!

Honestly, if it came down to both Mark and I having to figure out what one food we would choose to live on for the rest of our lives it would be a tight toss up between rice (him) and pasta (me). BUT fortunately that'll never happen because well they're cheap to buy and make! Whoop!

But tonight I am going to give the recipe for one of our favorite dairy free meals! Seriously, I made this when Mark and I first started dating and I thought I would throw it all back at the toilet after eating it but I loved it so much I ate half the pan... AND I DIDN'T FEEL LIKE A FAT KID! Say what!?!

Dairy Free Lasagna 

9-12 ea         Lasagna Noodles (You can opt for gluten free here... I will not compromise on my pasta)

3 1/4 Cups   Pasta Sauce (we like to make our own)

1 1/2 #         Ground Turkey/ Beef/ Sausage

2 Cups         Shredded Daiya cheese (seriously, dairy free AND gluten free cheese! Yummo)

1 Package    Medium firm tofu (don't hate)

Ok ya'll, now I know you see the tofu and about every single one of you sub contentiously scrunched your nose up and forced back some up chuck! But seriously, Mmm Mmm it is so tasty in this recipe!

Pre-heat oven to 375 F

In a medium size bowl place the cheese and the tofu and mix together with your hands. You want it to be mixed well but still have some chunk to it. In a pan brown your meat... I bolded Turkey because it's such a yummy choice and I personally don't eat pork and I just feel that beef in a lasagna dish is too weird. If you add some Italian spice (i.e. basil, oregano, pepper flakes, marjoram, etc.) to the turkey it tastes just like Italian sausage but it's leaner, not as polluted (free range) and its just a happier choice all together.

Par cook your noodles in a pot of boiling  salted water for about 7-9 min. Please make sure it's rapidly boiling or else you're going to have some sad looking noodles and if you don't salt the pasta water you're going to have a very bland dish. Too much salt will kill a dish, not enough salt will ensure it's never brought to life. 

Once your tofu and cheese is mixed, your meat is browned, your noodles are par cooked and your pasta sauce is ready you can begin assembling your dish.

If you're cooking for 2 I would recommend doing an 8x8 and anything else a 9 x 13 glass pan. Making three layers total switch between sauce, pasta, meat and then cheese/tofu mix. The reason you want to mix the tofu and cheese is because it gives the cheese a ricotta like texture, so smooth and without flaw. 

Once you have assembled your dish place it in your pre-heated oven and cook for 18-22 minutes or until the cheese is melted. I wasn't patient enough to see if it browned or not, but if you want it to brown you can keep it in there a little longer but make sure you don't evaporate all the pasta sauce and dry out your noodles :)