Subscriber OnlyRecipes

Root vegetable and lentil lasagne

Roots and lentils lasagne. Photograph: Harry Weir
Roots and lentils lasagne. Photograph: Harry Weir
Serves: 6
Course: Dinner
Cooking Time: 1 hr
Prep Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

  • 200g green lentils
  • 2tbs vegetable oil
  • 1 brown onion, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 2 carrots, diced
  • ½ small celeriac, diced
  • 1tsp dried oregano
  • 1tsp dried basil
  • 1tbs tomato purée
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes
  • 500ml vegan vegetable stock
  • 1tsp caster sugar
  • Sea salt and pepper
  • 30g plant butter
  • 2tbs cornflour
  • 400ml oat milk
  • ½tbs vegan Dijon mustard
  • ½tsp ground nutmeg
  • Juice of one small lemon
  • 1 box vegan lasagne sheets
  • 100g vegan cheddar cheese
  1. Put the green lentils in a bowl and cover with cold water, then start prepping your vegetables.
  2. Heat a large frying pan and add the oil. Add the diced onion and garlic and fry for two minutes, then add the diced carrot and celeriac and fry for a further four to five minutes, stirring regularly, until they start to go golden and soften slightly. Stir through the oregano and basil, then strain your green lentils and add them to the pan.
  3. Add the tomato purée, chopped tomatoes, vegetable stock, sugar, and season with salt and pepper. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low and allow to cook out for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened and the lentils are just cooked. (Add some water if the sauce becomes too thick.) Remove from the heat.
  4. While the lentil mix is cooking, make the vegan béchamel sauce. Place a small pot on the heat. Melt the plant butter and add the cornflour, mixing it together with a wooden spoon to form a paste. Pour in the oat milk and heat, whisking regularly to keep the sauce smooth, until the sauce begins to boil and thickens quickly, then reduce the heat to low. Add the Dijon mustard, nutmeg, lemon juice and a pinch of salt and whisk through the sauce, then check the seasoning and adjust if needed. Thin the sauce out with some more oat milk if it has become too thick.
  5. Preheat the oven to 190 degrees, then start assembling the lasagne. In a medium rectangular roasting dish, spoon in two spoons of the lentil mix and spread around the base of the dish. Cover with a single layer of lasagne sheets, breaking some if needed to fill any gaps. Add half of the lentil mix next, and smooth out evenly. Then add another layer of pasta sheets, followed by half of the béchamel sauce. Sprinkle a handful of the cheese on the béchamel sauce layer, then add another layer of pasta sheets. Add the remaining lentil mix, and cover with the last layer of pasta sheets. Top with the rest of the béchamel sauce and sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top.
  6. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes, then remove and allow to sit for five minutes before slicing and serving.
Mark Moriarty

Mark Moriarty

Mark Moriarty is an award winning chef, TV host, author and Irish Times columnist.