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–+ servings
carrot and lentil bolognese with pasta
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5 from 1 vote

Carrot and Lentil Bolognese

Bringing together a collection of relatively inexpensive store cupboard ingredients, alongside the humble carrot, this carrot and lentil Bolognese requires little work but seriously packs in the flavour.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Total Time1 hour 10 minutes
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American, British, Italian
Keyword: Bolognese, Carrot, italian, Lentil
Servings: 6 People
Calories: 611kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 large carrots
  • 2 sticks of celery
  • 1 large onion
  • 100 g sun-dried tomatoes
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 800 g tinned tomatoes
  • 50 g tomato purée
  • 400 g tin of lentils
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 tbsp freshly basil or rosemary
  • 1 tbsp fresh parsley optional to serve
  • 25 g parmesan optional to serve
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Grate the carrots coarsely, dice the celery and onion, and chop the sun-dried tomatoes into small pieces.
  • Heat the olive oil in a large pan and add all of the vegetables, together with the 3 cloves of crushed garlic, and cook over a medium heat until the onion is turning transparent – around 8-10 minutes.
  • Drain the lentils in a sieve, add these to the pan together with the tomato puree, and 2 tins of tomatoes. Fill half of each of the tins of tomatoes with water and add them to the pan – swirling around so as not to miss anything in the tin.
  • Mix all of this together, season well with salt and pepper, add in your chopped fresh basil or rosemary if using, and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook for 45 mins-1 hour, stirring every now and then.
  • Serve in bowls on top of your cooked pasta of choice, sprinkle over the freshly chopped parsley and parmesan cheese, if desired.

Notes

  • As Ella suggests in her cookbook Deliciously Ella, you can add in a can of drained kidney beans 10 minutes before the end of cooking to give the dish an extra protein boost.
  • This mixture makes a great vegetarian alternative to a beef bolognese when making vegetarian lasagne. Simply layer up your dish as you would normally.
  • If you get to the end of your sundried tomato jar, don't throw away the oil but keep it to use to cook with in this recipe. 

Nutrition

Calories: 611kcal | Carbohydrates: 102g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 4mg | Sodium: 630mg | Potassium: 1909mg | Fiber: 41g | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 8816IU | Vitamin C: 46mg | Calcium: 269mg | Iron: 13mg