Raise your hands if you would like to have your family eat more lentils? If your answer is yes, give this healthy spaghetti bolognese recipe a try. Its rich and hearty with the deep flavours of a bolognese that’s been cooked for hours. Best of all, it incorporates lentils without anyone noticing!

Spaghetti Bolognese is one of those universal favourite foods for kids. But how about lentils? Ummm…less likely…

But this recipe will incorporate red lentils without anyone noticing. Red lentils are a rich source of protein and fiber. Just 1/4 cup has 12g of protein and 7g of fiber! They’re also packed with B vitamins, magnesium, zinc and potassium and almost no fat.

Please take note to use red lentils because they breakdown while cooking so they work so nicely in soup, stews and sauces like this bolognese.

A delicious spaghetti bolognese is usually made up of the holy trio of carrot, onions and celery, ground meat, tomato sauce and parmesan cheese. In this recipe, I substitute a quarter of the meat you would normally use with lentils. Once the lentils are cooked, they blend right into the sauce and thickens it.

I also add in two heaping tablespoons of nutritional yeast to give it an extra boost of nutrition. Nutritional yeast is a popular ingredient in vegan cooking these days. It gives the dish a cheesy, nutty, flavour while being a great source of protein, B vitamins and minerals. Nutritional yeast also contains powerful antioxidants and is said to boost immunity.

Healthy cooking tip:
• Try adding less meat and more lentils next time. Once I added too many lentils and my daughter said “something tastes different…” Experiment and you’ll find out what ratio suits you and you’re family’s’ taste.
• Try using whole wheat spaghetti.
• Try adding some other veggies that your kids may not normally eat. I add mushrooms in this recipe because my kids otherwise wouldn’t eat them.

My daughter loves spaghetti bolognese and hasn’t noticed the difference from her regular bolognese sauce. Whew!

Now, I always make a double batch of this recipe and freeze half of it. Perfect for those days I have no time to cook and need an almost instant meal.

Best part is, no one will notice they ate lentils!

Spaghetti Bolognese with Lentils

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Prep Time 20

Cook Time 2

Total Time 2 20

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup onion diced
8 cloves of minced garlic
1/2 cup carrots diced
1/2 cup celery diced
1/2 cup mushrooms minced
3/4 pounds of ground beef
1/4 cup red lentils note to use red lentils because they breakdown while cooking
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoons black pepper
Pinch of nutmeg
1 cup whole milk
1 cup chicken stock
1 450ml can of crushed tomatoes
1-3 teaspoons sugar if the tomato sauce is quite acidic
2 heaping tablespoons of nutritional yeast
500 grams of spaghetti
Freshly grated parmesan to taste
Sprinkle of chilli flakes and or julienned basil if desired

Instructions

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions and sauté for 2-3 minutes.
Add carrots, celery and mushrooms and sauté for another 2-3 minutes.
Add minced garlic and sauté for another 2-3 minutes.
Add ground beef and cook until brown.
Add lentils, salt, black pepper, nutmeg and 1 cup of whole milk. Simmer while stirring until milk is absorbed.
Add chicken stock and crushed tomatoes. Cover and simmer for 2 hours. Stir occasionally and add 1 cup water whenever you notice the sauce is too dry.
Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper as needed. Also add sugar a teaspoon at a time if you feel the sauce is too acidic and needs to be a bit sweeter.
Add nutritional yeast.
Cook the spaghetti in a large pot of salted water. Take out when al denté with tongs and add it to the sauce and stir. Reserve a cup of pasta water to add to the sauce if too dry.
Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese, chili flakes and julienned basil if desired.