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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 veggie 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 favourite 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 lasagnasince 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.
Pin this now to find it later
Pin ItTo 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 tbsp 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 tbsp of ragu followed by 2-3 tbsp of bechamel sauce (keep 1/4 of the bechamel sauce for the top layer). Repeat this until all the pasta and ragu has been used up, finish with the final 1/4 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.
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Lentil Ragu Lasagne
Ingredients
For the lentil ragu
- 1 carrot
- 1 stalk of celery
- 1 white onion
- 2 2/3 cups (200g) mushrooms, , sliced
- 2 cups (410g) puy lentils, , pre-cooked
- 6.7 fl oz (200ml) red wine
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 1/4 cups (500g) passata/pureed tomatoes
- 1 tbsp of olive oil
For the bechamel sauce
- 3 tbsp (50g) butter
- 1/3 cup (50g) flour
- 1 2/3 cup (400ml) milk
- 3.1 oz (90g) fontina cheese, grated
- Salt and pepper
- 1 tbsp 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 tbsp 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 tbsp of ragu followed by 2-3 tbsp of bechamel sauce (keep 1/4 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 1/4 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
- Fontina cheese can be substituted for gruyere, white cheddar or another strong melting cheese.
- This recipe serves 4-6 people, great served with salad.
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.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I veganised this recipe by using nutritional yeast flakes instead of Parmesan, soy milk instead of cow milk and dairy-free spread instead of butter in the béchamel. Had dairy-free mozzarella for the too but would have been excellent even without it. This recipe was super easy to whip up and the friends I cooked this for couldn’t stop raving about it. They were well impressed, so now I’m making it again for my mum! Thanks!
That’s a great way to make it vegan, thanks so much for sharing!
Looks delicious! Can you freeze this?
Love it
very tasty
recipe layout and instructions made it easy
So happy you found it easy to follow!
We want to cook to take to a friend’s dinner party and were wondering if you can reheat it when we get there? Thanks!
Hi Jamie, yes, you can make it in advance then reheat it when you’re ready to serve! Have a great night!
Do you cook the lentils first or do they go in dry?
Hi Leo, I use pre-cooked puy lentils for this recipe. You should be able to buy them pre-cooked in the supermarket.
Who knew lentils could look so tasty and delicious! I’ll have to try out this recipe for myself soon it looks so good!
This looks so tasty and no meat either! Could you substitute another vegetable for mushrooms?
Thanks so much Bintu, I’ve added leek before which is really nice or you could try chopped aubergine.
I love the idea of a lentil lasagna (yes, I’m Canadian) or, now that I know better, lasagne. I have to try this! Thanks for sharing.