Lentil and Mushroom Baked Pasta

As a vegetarian who isn't a great cook, I'm always trying out different variations of the trusty old faithfuls! One thing that lends itself to endless variety is the good old pasta bake. This is a variation I made yesterday, since we had a glut of mushrooms that needed using up. I used a mixture of chestnut and oyster mushrooms - if you used wild mushrooms, you'd probably need less as the flavour is more intense.

Lentil and Mushroom Baked Pasta

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 120g / 4oz sliced mushrooms
• 120g / 4oz red or green lentils
• 120ml / 1/4pt vegetable stock
• Generous slosh of red wine
• 200g / 7oz can of chopped tomatoes
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• Pinch each of oregano, thyme, salt and black pepper
• 1 small bay leaf
• 1 mozzarella cheese (150g), sliced
• 120g / 4oz pasta (I used spirals, but any shape will do)
• Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano cheese

Way to do it:

1. Heat the oil in a pan, and fry the onions, garlic and mushrooms until the onions are soft.


2. Add the lentils, tomatoes, stock, wine, tomato purée, and seasonings. Bring to the boil and simmer until the lentils are soft (about 20 mins for red lentils, up to 40 mins for green).


3. Cook the pasta in plenty of salted water and drain.


4. In a shallow ovenproof dish, make a layer of pasta, cover it with half the lentil sauce, half the mozzarella. Repeat the three layers ending with the mozzarella, and sprinkle with the Parmigiano to taste.


5. Bake at for about 20-25 mins at 90 degrees C/Gas Mark 5, until the top is browned.

Depending on appetite and what you're serving with it (I served it with a green salad and garlic bread), this should make 2-3 servings.