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Sodium: 670 mg

Vitamin A: 35%

Vitamin C: 150%

Calcium: 25%

Iron: 30%

Toasty, scrumptious roasted cauliflower blends perfectly into tofu ricotta and gives this lasagna so much flavor your head might burst. The sauce cooks right with the lasagna; no need for two billion pots and pans, only one million! A handful of olives is scattered across the top for that salty kick you need, so no expensive and fatty soy cheese required. I know the long cooking time can be scary sounding, but that’s lasagna for you! To make things even easier, prep the ricotta a day ahead. It’s actually an easy recipe to pull off and there is plenty of downtime. Be aware that this is baked in an 8-inch pan and it really fills it up to the top.

The possibilities for variations are endless but I’ll list a few here:

• Instead of (or in addition to) olives, place thinly sliced fresh tomatoes on top.

• Tuck big cloves of roasted garlic into the layers (they sell them already roasted at many supermarkets); use about ¼ cup.

• Saute some mushrooms and add them right under the spinach.

• Chop a roasted red pepper into the sauce.

ROASTED CAULIFLOWER RICOTTA:

1 medium-size head cauliflower (1½ to 2 pounds), chopped into

½-inch pieces

2 teaspoons olive oil

½ teaspoon salt

1 pound extra-firm tofu

¼ cup nutritional yeast flakes

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Several pinches of freshly ground black pepper

RED SAUCE:

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes with basil

2 tablespooris chopped fresh thyme

3 cloves garlic, minced

½ teaspoon salt

TO ASSEMBLE:

8 ounces lasagna noodles, broken in half, cooked in salted water

1½ cups chopped fresh spinach

¼ cup chopped black olives

NOTE

It’s kind a tough to find whole wheat lasagna noodles. The calculations here are for regular old lasagna noodles, but if you’ve got the gumption, Food Fight Grocery (www.foodpghtgrocery.com) stocks whole wheat, and I bet if you begged your neighborhood health food store, they might carry them.

First, we’ll roast the cauliflower. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; that way the cauliflower won’t stick. Place the cauliflower on the sheet and drizzle the oil over it. Spray it with non-stick cooking spray and sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon of salt. Toss it with your hands to make sure everything is salted. Spread the cauliflower in a single layer and bake for 10 minutes, then flip it with a spatula. You don’t have to flip each and every one, so don’t get OCD about it. Bake for another 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned, tender, and toasty.

In the meantime, crumble the tofu into a mixing bowl. Use your hands to mash the tofu, squeezing it between your fingers, until it has the consistency of ricotta cheese. Add the nutritional yeast, lemon juice, pepper, and remaining salt. Use a fork to mix well.

NOTE

I think it’s pretty common to find the crushed tomatoes with basil, but if you would prefer you can just add ¼ cup finely chopped basil to the sauce.

When the cauliflower is done, transfer it to the mixing bowl with the tofu mixture. Use a potato masher to mash it really well, for a minute or so. If it doesn’t seem to be mashing enough with the potato masher, a few pulses in the food processor should get it nice and crumbly. Set aside.

To prepare the sauce, mix all its ingredients together and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Pour a thin layer of red sauce on the bottom of an 8-inch square casserole. Line with a layer of noodles. Spread with one-third of the cauliflower ricotta. Layer with ¾ cup of spinach leaves. Pour on about a cup of sauce.

Repeat the process one more time, creating another identical layer, starting with the noodles. For the top layerit’s just a little different: Layer with noodles, pour the sauce on first, then layer with ricotta. This layer doesn’t get any spinach. Sprinkle with a layer of olives and press it into the the tofu.

NOTE

For time management, boil the water for the noodles about 10 minutes into the cauliflower roasting.