cheesy black bean lasagna

cheesy black bean lasagna is a vegetarian high protein and high fiber pasta recipe.

It’s a pcod, pcos, diabetic and weight loss recipe that’s – high on nutrition, low carb, low glycemic index and low fat. It has layers of pasta/tomato sauce, white pasta sauce, black beans, garden vegetables and mozzarella/cheddar cheese – can adjust the cheese quantity depending on how much fat you want per serving. All the sauces I used in this recipe are homemade. To reduce cooking time, you can use store bought versions.

The white sauce is optional – I recommend adding it. It adds a nice creaminess to the dish( without the cream, of course :))

what’s a lasagna?

lasagna is an Italian pasta recipe with layers of – boiled flat sheet pasta, pasta sauce, vegetables/meat, lots of cheese. As a vegetarian, I substitute meat with vegetables and a protein component, which in this recipe is black beans. If you do not have flat sheet pasta, you can use boiled regular pasta, like, penne, fusilli or any other variety you have. I use penne a lot in my lasagna dishes.

Can any beans be used?

black beans, kidney beans or any beans of this variety is high on protein, high on fiber that makes it a very healthy option for vegetarians. Black beans has lots of good nutrition and is low on the glycemic index (GI) scale, making it a very good lentil to add in your pcos/pcod menu. You can substitute this with any beans of your choice.

which cheese to use?

in this recipe, I used my store bought tex mex – blend of mozzarella, cheddar, monterey jack along with a bit of parmesan for a slight nutty flavor.

need more pasta recipes? check 10+ pasta recipes below-

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Details

Servings

Prep time

30 minutes

Cooking time

20 minutes

Ingredients

lasagna sheets/pasta sheets, boiled as per packet instructions – 8 to 10
red pasta sauce – 2 cups (CHECK MY HOMEMADE SAUCE RECIPE HERE)
black beans, boiled – 1 cup
mixed vegetables – cabbage, red peppers, green peppers, green beans – 2 cups
cheese – mozzarella/cheddar/any other – 1 cup
Italian mixed herbs – oregano, basil, thyme – 2 tsp
parmesan cheese, optional – 1/4 cup
salt – to taste
olive oil or any other – 2 tbsp
butter – 1 tbsp
all purpose flour/maida – 1 tbsp
milk – 3 cups
black pepper powder – 1/2 tsp

PREPARATIONS – WHITE PASTA SAUCE

Heat a pan on medium low.
Add the butter and let it melt.
Add the all purpose flour and keep mixing till there are no lumps and the flour is well mixed
Then while stirring continuously, add the milk. Let it simmer on low heat for 1-2 mins.
Add 1 tsp of Italian herbs, pepper powder and salt to taste
Transfer into a bowl and set aside.

PREPARATIONS – VEGETABLES

Heat a pan on medium high heat.
Add 1 tbsp of oil. Add the vegetables – cabbage, green and red peppers, green beans.
Add enough salt and remaining Italian herbs. Saute for 5-7 minutes till they are stir fried.
Transfer to a plate and set aside.

PREPARATIONS – BLACK BEANS, OPTIONAL

Heat a pan with 1 cup water. Once it starts simmering, add the boiled black beans.
Add enough salt, 2 tbsp of pasta sauce and cook covered for 5-7 minutes.
Mash the beans slightly till most of them are mushy.
Once the mixture is thick and looks creamy, transfer into a bowl and set aside.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375F or 190C.
In a lasagna baking tin or an aluminum baking tin that has some depth, first add a layer of red pasta sauce.
On this, add 2-3 sheets of pasta (depending on the width of your tin) making sure it covers the entire width.
On this, add a layer of white sauce, then a layer of black beans and vegetables.
Then add a layer of red pasta sauce and a layer of cheese.
Repeat these layers till all the pasta sheets are used.
Finish the layering with cheese on the top. Add the parmesan as well on the top layer.
Sprinkle some Italian herbs and red chili flakes – optional. Add 1/2 cup of water on the sides of the layered pasta, this prevents pasta from drying out.
Bake this in the pre heated oven for 20-30 minutes or until the top layer of cheese is nice golden brown in color.
Serve warm/hot with a nice toasted bread and a sprinkling of more parmesan on top!

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