Lentil Ragu Lasagne

A comforting and easy lasagne made with a mushroom, lentil ragu, fresh pasta and a fontina bechamel sauce. This flavour packed lasange will satisfy both vegetarian and meat lovers!

If you are looking for a great, hearty and delicious meat-free meal then look no further. This lentil ragu lasagne is not only incredibly delicious but so simple and easy to make. You don't have to simmer the ragu for hours upon end and it can be made in advance making dinner time so much easier and so much more delicious!

I've got a new favourite peeps, I mean I am seriously in love with this lasagne recipe. I can't believe how little time it takes to make (compared to traditional lasagne recipes) obviously because there is no meat involved but it's in no way lacking in flavour and dare I say it?...

It's just as good as my all time favoruite traditional recipe (with meat).

That's how good it is!

Lasagna or Lasagne?

Lasagne is the plural form of a lasagna sheet so two sheets would be lasagne and not lasagna since this only means one sheet in Italian. However, in many parts of the world especially English speaking countries the word lasagna refers to the traditional Italian dish in general. In most authentic and traditional Italian recipes you will see the word lasagne being used.

Lentil ragu Vs meat ragu - how are they different?

Ok apart from stating the obvious, one is made with meat and one is made with lentils let's talk about the differences. My traditional meat ragu (for making lasagne and many other pasta dishes) is literally just soffitto (carrot, onion and celery) pork mince and beef mince, tomatoes, red wine and some herbs.

This lentil ragu is made with soffritto, puy lentils, mushrooms (these add so much flavour, texture and bulk it out more), tomatoes, red wine, oregano and garlic.

Both use very similar ingredients but the meat ragu takes at least 2 hours to make and the lentil ragu takes under half an hour. This means you can actually make this lentil ragu from scratch even on weekdays, toss it together with some pasta and you're sorted.

How to make lentil ragu lasagne - step by step

Finely chop the carrot, celery and onion. Add the olive oil to a large pan and add the chopped vegetables, sauté the veg gently until soft but not browned (around 7-8 minutes). Finely slice the mushroom and add them to the sauted vegetables (photos 1,2).

Fry the mushrooms for 2 minutes then add the pureed tomato/passata with the crushed garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir everything together and add the red wine (photos 3,4).

Let the ragu simmer gently for 10 minutes, then add the lentils. Stir the lentils into the sauce, simmer gently for another 2 minutes then turn off the heat (photos 4-6).

Tip: If the sauce reduces too much before the lentils are added then add a little water to the sauce and let it cook down slightly.

To make the bechamel sauce add the butter to a sauce pan over a low heat, once melted add the flour and stir into a paste. Stir the paste for around 30 seconds then add half of the milk, whisk the milk to get rid of any lumps. Once it starts to thicken add the rest of the milk and whisk until it thickens once more.

Turn the heat off and add the grated cheese, parmesan, nutmeg and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir the sauce until the cheese has melted and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400F/gas mark 6. Add 1-2 tablespoon of lentil ragu to the bottom of a baking dish and spread it around. Add a layer of fresh lasagna sheets (you may need to cut some sheets to fit your dish). Add another 2-3 tablespoon of ragu followed by 2-3 tablespoon of bechamel sauce (keep ¼ of the bechamel sauce for the top layer). Repeat this until all the pasta and ragu has been used up, finish with the final ¼ of bechamel sauce (photos 7-9).

Cover the lasagne with tin foil and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and top with the mozzarella, bake uncovered for 10-15 minutes until the cheese has melted, browned and bubbling.

Let the lasagne rest for 5-10 minutes before serving, this is great served with salad.

More pasta recipes to try;

• Pizzoccheri pasta with cabbage, potatoes and fontina cheese
• Farfalle pasta with pancetta, chili and garlic
• Creamy butternut squash pasta

If you've tried this lentil ragu lasagne or any other recipe on the blog then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more delicious food and what I'm getting up to.

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5 from 6 votes

Lentil Ragu Lasagne

A comforting and easy lasagne made with a mushroom, lentil ragu, fresh pasta and a fontina bechamel sauce. This flavour packed lasange will satisfy both vegetarian and meat lovers!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Servings 4 people

Calories 514kcal

Author Emily Kemp

Ingredients

For the lentil ragu

• ▢ 1 carrot
• ▢ 1 stalk of celery
• ▢ 1 white onion
• ▢ 2 ⅔ cups (200g) mushrooms , sliced
• ▢ 2 cups (410g) puy lentils , pre-cooked
• ▢ 6.7 fl oz (200ml) red wine
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic crushed
• ▢ 2 ¼ cups (500g) passata/pureed tomatoes
• ▢ 1 tablespoon of olive oil

For the bechamel sauce

• ▢ 3 tbsp (50g) butter
• ▢ ⅓ cup (50g) flour
• ▢ 1 ⅔ cup (400ml) milk
• ▢ 3.1 oz (90g) fontina cheese grated
• ▢ Salt and pepper
• ▢ 1 tablespoon parmesan
• ▢ 4.4 oz (125g) mozzarella torn
• ▢ 6-10 large fresh lasagna sheets

Instructions

• Finely chop the carrot, celery and onion. Add the olive oil to a large pan and add the chopped vegetables, sauté the veg gently until soft but not browned (around 7-8 minutes). Finely slice the mushroom and add them to the sauted vegetables.
• Fry the mushrooms for 2 minutes then add the pureed tomatoes/passata with the crushed garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir everything together and add the red wine.
• Let the ragu simmer gently for 10 minutes then add the lentils. If the sauce reduces too much add a little water to the sauce before the lentils are added. Stir the lentils into the sauce and simmer gently for another 2 minutes, turn the heat off.
• To make the bechamel sauce add the butter to a sauce pan over a low heat, once melted add the flour and stir into a paste. Stir the paste for around 30 seconds then add half of the milk, whisk the milk to get rid of any lumps. Once it starts to thicken add the rest of the milk and whisk until it starts to thicken.
• Turn the heat off and add the grated cheese, parmesan, nutmeg and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir the sauce until the cheese has melted and set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 200°C/400F/gas mark 6. Add 1-2 tablespoon of lentil ragu to the bottom of a baking dish and spread it around. Add a layer of fresh lasagna sheets (you may need to cut some sheets to fit your dish). Add another 2-3 tablespoon of ragu followed by 2-3 tablespoon of bechamel sauce (keep ¼ of the bechamel sauce for the top layer). Repeat this until all the ragu has been used up, ideally, you want around 6 layers. Finish with the final ¼ of bechamel sauce.
• Cover the lasagne with tin foil and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and top with the mozzarella, bake uncovered for 10-15 minutes until the cheese has melted, browned and bubbling.
• Let the lasagne rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Notes

Please note this recipe was tested and developed using metric measurements all imperial measurements are approximate.

• Fontina cheese can be substituted for gruyere, white cheddar or another strong melting cheese.
• This recipe serves 4-6 people, great served with salad.

Nutrition

Calories: 514kcal

Helpful Info for All Recipes

• I always use extra virgin olive oil in all of my recipes unless stated otherwise
• When I use canned or jarred tomatoes of any kind I always use Cirio or Mutti brands for the best results and flavour.
• All vegetables are medium sized unless stated otherwise
• All recipes are tested and developed using a fan (convection) oven
• Find out more about how nutrition is calculated.
• Check out our must have Italian Pantry Staples.
• You can also find all our Essential Kitchen Tools for Italian Cooking.

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