Green Lentil Spaghetti Bolognese

This pasta is pure satisfaction on a plate. The base of green lentils blends beautifully with the caramelized onions and mushrooms, and soy sauce and slow-cooked tomatoes really bring out that umami flavor. The topping of almond parmesan takes it to the next level - decadent and comforting.

This recipe showcases how a simple ingredient swap (like lean ground beef for lentils) transforms a dish into a health-promoting and environmentally friendly meal—a win-win for all and a swap worth celebrating!

For the same 20g of protein, lentils provide an additional 17g of fiber and almost no saturated fat, in contrast to lean ground beef’s 5gm saturated fat, (26% of the daily value). Lentils also provide an extra 5mg of iron, (addressing concerns about plant-based iron absorption) along with essential minerals like magnesium, potassium, calcium and phosphorus. This makes it a superior choice for not only environmental health, but also for our microbiome and heart health.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dried green lentils*

• 2 bay leaves

• 1 Tbsp olive oil

• 3 onions

• 1 head of garlic cloves

• 300g mushrooms

• 1 tbsp Italian herbs

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 680 ml can tomato sauce

• 1 Tbsp soy sauce

• 1 pack of spaghetti noodles (454 g)

For the Almond Parmesan*

• 1/2 cup ground almonds or almond flour

• 1/8 cup nutritional yeast

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 tsp salt

*If you’re short on time, swap canned lentils for dried green lentils, and nutritional yeast for almond parmesan

Instructions:

1. Cook dried green lentils. Rinse the lentils in cold water, then add to a pot. Cover lentils with water, add 2 bay leaves, and boil for 30 minutes. Drain the excess water, then these are ready for the recipe. (Alternately use 1 can of canned brown lentils, drained.)

2. Once lentils are cooking, start making the sauce. This sauce takes about 25 minutes to come together, so check your pasta package for cooking instructions and start that when needed. Preheat a large pan over medium heat, add 1 Tbsp of olive oil and 3 chopped onions. Saute onions until slightly caramelized and browned, then add chopped mushrooms, Italian seasoning, salt, and chopped garlic. Saute until browned. Then add in the can of tomato sauce, soy sauce, and cooked lentils. Cover and let thicken, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes.

3. This is a great time to make the almond parmesan. If using whole almonds, blitz them up in a blender to make almond flour, then stir in the nutritional yeast, garlic powder, and salt.

4. Once pasta sauce has thickened, taste test, then add salt and red chili flakes as desired.

5. Serve on top of spaghetti noodles, with the almond parmesan sprinkles.