Name: Vegetarian Bolognese
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 1 white onion, diced yield 1 cup); 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1 cup diced carrots; 1 cup diced celery; 16 ounces mushrooms, chopped; 2 1/2 cups cooked brown lentils (I used Trader Joes steamed lentils); 1 26.46 ounce Pomi Chopped tomatoes (or diced tomatoes of choice); 1 cup dry red wine (I used Merlot); 1/2 teaspoon chili flakes (red pepper flakes); 2 teaspoons vegan Worcestershire Sauce; 1 Tablespoon Italian Seasoning; 16 ounces whole-grain spaghetti (or pasta of choice) ( I used 12 ounces for 6 servings and froze the rest of the sauce); 3/4 cup unsweetened, unflavored oat milk (or plant milk of choice); 1/4 cup nutritional yeast; Parsley garnish; Vegan parmesan cheese (optional)

When I think about comfort food, Italian food always comes to mind. Vegetarian Bolognese, for example, is one of my favorite dishes. Bolognese sauce, although traditionally a meat sauce, can easily be made vegan with just a few adjustments.

In fact, Bolognese sauce is much thicker than a typical American red sauce, because it’s creamier with just a touch of tomato. Since most Italian sauces are mostly tomato based, my vegetarian Bolognese is similar to a ragout.

HOW TO MAKE VEGETARIAN BOLOGNESE SAUCE

As I said earlier, traditional Bolognese contains meat and heavy cream. My bolognese, however, is full of lentils, vegetables, and a little oat milk and nutritional yeast for the creamy component.

WHAT VEGETABLES ARE IN THE BOLOGNESE SAUCE?

Mushrooms
Carrots
Celery
Onions
Garlic

WHAT OTHER INGREDIENTS ARE IN VEGETARIAN BOLOGNESE?

Lentils
POMI Chopped Tomatoes
Oat Milk (unsweetened and unflavored or other plant milk)
Nutritional Yeast
Tomato paste
Vegetable Broth (only if making the one-pot option)
Red Wine (dry)
Vegan Worcestershire Sauce (I used Annie’s )
Whole-Grain Spaghetti or Pasta of Choice
Italian Seasoning
Vegan Parmesan Cheese
Parsley

In order to make the sauce, simply cook the ingredients in what I call layers in a large pot. For example, begin by sautéing the garlic and onions until translucent. Then, I add the chopped mushrooms and cook until brown. Next, I add the celery, carrots, and lentils and cook for about 10 minutes.

Once the carrots and celery soften, I add the tomatoes, vegetable broth, and tomato paste. As the mixture cooks down, I add red wine and allow it to cook down further with the ingredients.

COOK THE PASTA SEPARATELY OR USE THE ONE-POT VERSION

Even though I chose to cook the bolognese sauce separately from the pasta today, I love one-pot meals. Similar to my other one-pot meals, vegetarian Bolognese can be made in one pot by adjusting the ingredients. Because I planned to freeze half the sauce, and only make 6 servings today, I cooked the spaghetti.

ONE-POT VEGETARIAN BOLOGNESE OPTION (QUICK, EASY, AND ALL IN ONE-POT)

Increase the vegetable broth to 3 cups
Increase pasta to 16 ounces
Add pasta to the pot after liquids, bring to a boil, cover and reduce to simmer for 15 minutes

Regardless if you cook the pasta to the pot for the one-pot version, or you cook the spaghetti separate, the plant-based milk and nutritional yeast is added last. As a result, the sauce becomes cheesy and creamy.

SERVING VEGETARIAN BOLOGNESE

Next, I served in individual bowls, topped with Vegan Parmesan Cheese and my family’s favorite Vegan Garlic Bread and add some parsley for color.

FREEZING VEGETARIAN BOLOGNESE SAUCE

Whenever I make vegetarian Bolognese, I always freeze half the sauce or use the sauce for a variety of other Italian recipes during the week.

In order to freeze the sauce, make sure to leave 2 inches between the top of the freezer-safe container and the sauce. For best results, make sure the sauce is defrosted completely before reheating.

IF YOU LOVE QUICK AND EASY PASTA RECIPES, CHECK OUT THESE RECIPES

12 servings