Pesto Lasagna

Quick prep: Use any homemade cheese you have on hand. This is a good recipe to serve with a green salad. You could also try adding a layer of marinated portobello mushrooms or dehydrated eggplant strips.

Serves 2

Ingredients

Cilantro Pesto (use 1⁄2 cup for this recipe):

1 cup fresh basil

11⁄2 cups fresh cilantro

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup pine nuts

Pine Nut Cheese (use 1⁄2 cup for this recipe):

2 cups pine nuts

1⁄2 cup cashews

3⁄4 cups water

1⁄2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon nutritional yeast

Lasagna:

2 medium zucchinis

1⁄4 teaspoon salt

1⁄4 cup raw olives, for  garnish

  1. For the pesto, using the S blade on a food processor, process the basil, cilantro, garlic, and salt until the basil is chopped. Add in the pine nuts and olive oil. Process until smooth. Use a spatula to scrape the sides of the food processor bowl. Do not overprocess — there should still be small chunks of basil and pine nuts in the sauce.
  2. For the Pine Nut Cheese, process all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. You can use this spread right away, and it has a texture that resembles cream cheese. If you want it to taste more like a hard cheese, spread the mix onto dehydrator trays and dry at 145°F for 1 to 2 hours.
  3. Create the lasagna noodles by slicing zucchini into long, thin strips with a potato peeler or mandolin slicer. Sprinkle the strips with a 1⁄4 teaspoon salt.
  4. Place a layer of zucchini on the bottom of a glass baking pan. Place a layer of pesto sauce on the zucchini. Place another layer of zucchini on the pesto. Place a layer of pine nut cheese, another layer of zucchini, and a final layer of pesto.
  5. Sprinkle olives on top to garnish.

Per Serving

Calories: 821

Fat: 82 g

Protein: 14 g

Sodium: 889 mg

Fiber: 5 g

Pesto

Traditionally made by hand in a marble mortar with a wooden pestle, this dish can be created with mint and basil or cilantro. Other variations include the use of almonds or walnuts in place of pine nuts, and the addition of olives, sun-dried tomatoes, mushrooms, or lemon peel.