Story: Lentil Lasagna
Episode: 6
Presenter: Caroline Taylor
Air Date: 12th October 2025

Caroline cooks up a hearty lentil lasagna. A wholesome, home-cooked meal: a perfect go-to for all occasions.


Ingredients

• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Brown onion
• 1 kg Drained brown lentils
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• 1tbsp sugar
• 1/4 cu of red wine
• Large can (800g) of chopped tomatoes
• ½ cup plain flour
• ½ tsp nutmeg
• 1L of Milk
• 150g Butter
• 150g-200g Shredded mozzarella or cheddar
• Olive oil
• Optional: Thyme and/or oregano

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F)
• Sauté minced garlic and diced brown onion in a mix of 75g of butter and olive oil until translucent. (If you have thyme or oregano, you can add these too)
• Add the drained brown lentils and let them soak up all that flavour.
• Stir through tomato paste, sugar, balsamic vinegar, and red wine, then let it simmer for a few minutes.
• Tip in a large can of chopped tomatoes, crack in some pepper, and let it bubble away gently for about 15 minutes.
• While that’s simmering, melt 75g butter, then stir in flour and cook until it’s just starting to turn golden.
• Add nutmeg and slowly whisk in the milk. Keep whisking as it thickens, adding more milk as needed. If you end up with clumps, just run it through a sieve.
• Spread a little white sauce on the base of your baking dish to act as glue.
• Add lasagna sheets, a layer of lentils, more white sauce, then repeat until you finish with white sauce and a generous topping of cheese.
• Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the top is bubbling and golden.
• Serve it hot with a crunchy garden salad and a drizzle of balsamic.

Optional: Cool, cut into squares, freeze, then crumb and deep-fry for party snacks.