Vegan Spaghetti Bolognese

This recipe was unplanned and completely thrown together. It was the end of the week and I had very little in my cupboard except some beans and pulses, chopped tomatoes, pasta and herbs, so the idea of a bolognese came to me. I had tried making a bolognese before but the taste of the chopped tomatoes was overpowering, rendering the dish quite tasteless, so this time I threw in a combination of herbs to see what happened. The result was incredibly tasty; a delicious bolognese made hearty with the chickpeas and lentils and with an incredible aroma and flavour, just like what you get when you go to an authentic Italian restaurant. I'm sure you know the kind of bolognese I'm talking about.

The best part about this recipe is how easy it is - you simply throw everything in a pan and let it simmer whilst the flavours develop. You can cook it for half an hour or, if you really want to draw out the flavours, let it simmer for a couple of hours. It's up to you!

A word of advice on the chopped tomatoes, chickpeas and lentils; I always check the ingredients when I buy these at the supermarket as I recently came across chopped tomatoes that contained sugar and preservatives, as well as chickpeas and lentils that had sulphites and E numbers in them. Tesco and Asda are particularly bad for this so always check the label - it's best to avoid all added nasties! There should be a few brands to choose from so I recommend checking the label of a few. You simply want the product (ie chickpeas) in water. It's that simple.

Ingredients (serves 4)
Gluten-free spaghetti (I like this brown rice spaghetti from Doves Farm as it contains only one ingredient)
400g box of chopped tomatoes
300g tin of chickpeas
300g tin of green lentils
2 large garlic cloves
2 large handfuls of spinach
Sprinkling of sea salt
2-3 tbsp turmeric
2 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp oregano
2 tbsp rosemary
1 tbsp black pepper
2 tbsp tamari soy sauce (this is gluten free)
1 tsp coconut oil
1 large white onion
1 medium shallot

Method
1. Dice the white onion and shallot, then add a teaspoon of coconut oil to a saucepan and pan fry the onion and shallot on high heat until they start to brown.
2. Crush the garlic cloves and add them to the saucepan along with the chopped tomatoes. Make sure you bring the temperature right down to avoid the chopped tomatoes burning on the bottom of the pan.
3. Stir everything together until the chopped tomatoes start to gently boil. Once they do, add in the lentils, chickpeas, soy sauce and herbs.
4. Let everything simmer for at least 30 minutes or longer.
5. Once you have cooked the bolognese to your desired taste, boil the pasta, adding a tiny bit of coconut oil to stop it sticking together (I find that gluten free pasta tends to solidify into a lump otherwise)
6. Serve and enjoy!

This is a perfect dinner party recipe as it tastes great and is super easy to make. Alternatively you could make a big batch for your lunches and freeze it in portions.

Happy cooking!

- Anna