Vegan by Valerie

Easy Vegan Lasagna

Today started off right with some of this lovely Ugandan espresso blend that our friend Caity brought back from her time teaching in Uganda!  It went perfectly with my homemade pumpkin spice coffee syrup!

This juice wasn’t 2 toned today…. but it was soooo much more tasty!! I used anise – which the CSA included in my juicing box – which, surprisingly, I LOVED! It made it taste like licorice candy….. which I was a huge fan of, despite the fact that I don’t even like regular licorice!  I highly recommend this addition to your morning juice!

To continue the trend of making-that-day’s-dinner-at-breakfast-time, around 8am I whipped up a batch of Vegan Lasagna. 

Here’s how to make the “cheese”:

* 1 package organic firm tofu, crumbled

* 1 T. lemon juice

* 1/3 c. nutritional yeast

* “parmesan” cheese to taste (blend of nutritional yeast and ground walnuts)

* Blend all of the ingredients together – it will resemble feta cheese – but don’t mix too much so that you retain the “cheesey” texture!  It doesn’t look appetizing but it tastes good I swear…

I cooked up some whole wheat lasagna noodles (one package), and sliced up 2 of these Japanese eggplants.

When I used to make real cheese lasagna, I would make 2 bowls: one with cottage cheese, eggs, mozz and parm cheeses, and spices, and another bowl of kidney beans, homemade tomato sauce, canned tomatoes, caramelized onions, and spices.

This time, the “tofu cheese” replaced the cottage cheese bowl and I made the other bowl the same way (pasta sauce, kidney beans, canned tomatoes, spices).

Then, I drizzled a bit of plain tomato sauce on the bottom of a pan, then noodles, then eggplant, then spinach, then cheese layer, then tomato, etc etc until all ingredients are used up. Sprinkle top layer with tomato sauce and more “parmesan”.

This turned out wonderfully! If you make this recipe, I would double the tofu cheese, which was my favorite part.

Later in the day, I decided to try this recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie’s website.  I blended about 8  T. almond butter with 3 ripe bananas… wow!!!! This stuff is soooooooo good, I cannot explain to you. I’m storing it in an old TJ jar but I have a feeling it won’t last long…

I’m going to head to spinning class in a bit here, and then will hopefully get to bed early tonight to get ready for my first day back to work tomorrow!  As all school social workers (and teachers and other school personnel) can attest, the first day of school is just as nerve-wracking for staff as it is for students!  I’m excited but definitely nervous at the same time.  But, I’m also looking forward to getting back to work and I know it will be a great year!

What are your tips for braving “the first day of school”?  How do you get yourself psyched up for a new job/going back to work/starting a new endeavor?

Gratitude Journal:

1) I am so lucky to have a job

2) I am so happy to have a job that lets me help others and that I enjoy

3) I am soooooo excited for all things fall!!!

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