Lentil bolognese

Hello :) Hooray for the weekend and hooray for sunny weather! It's actually quite warm today, a nice change. So spaghetti bolognese is a weekly meal in our house, and I'm sure it might be in yours too. However mince meat really doesn't excite me, so I make mine with red lentils instead. I don't generally use a recipe, but here's how I made lentil bolognese for today's lunch.

Recipe: Lentil Bolognese 
Ingredients-
3/4 bunch of basil, chopped
2 (400g) chopped tinned tomatoes
1/2 cup red lentils
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 leek, chopped, white part only
1 carrot, finely diced
splash of balsamic vinegar (optional)
1 teaspoon brown sugar (optional)
Method-
1. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil (I used rice bran) until hot, and add basil to 'deep fry' for 2 minutes.
2. Add the chopped garlic, leek and carrot and stir for a few minutes to soften.
3. Add the chopped tomatoes & red lentils. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and brown sugar if using. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30-40 minutes, or until the sauce has been reduced and the lentils are soft and cooked.
4. In the meantime cook up pasta of your choice. I used wholemeal spirals.
5. Serve in a bowl, and garnish with freshly chopped basil & parmasen if desired.

Most of my ingredients all ready to go!

Lots of chopping.

And ta-da! It was so tasty! Loving fresh basil at the moment. And I served it with a few slices of baguette with butter. 

Enjoy the weekend! 

Update: I just had some bolognese on toast topped with grated cheese for a lazy dinner. yum yum!

Hannah x