Zesty Homemade Glutenfree Lentil Pasta Sauce

Protein-rich Gluten-free Zesty Lentil and Quinoa Pasta Sauce

This delightful warming sauce with its plant-based proteins of lentils and quinoa, is adapted from the "Lentil Quinoa Bolognese Sauce" recipe in Kathy Hester's The Great Vegan Bean Book: More Than 100 Plant-Based Dishes Packed With The Kindest Protein In Town.  

I love beans-- well, legumes of all ilk-- and I love how Hester has put together this cookbook, with recipes that meet people's dietary and health needs (gluten-free, soy-free, no added-oil, nut allergy recipes are labeled) and in a way that shows the diversity of the protein-rich bean. 

 There are recipes for everything from the familiar hearty savoury dishes straight through incorporating beans into breads and other baked items to amazing beany desserts (like, how about "Double-Chocolate Devil's Food Cookies" using cooked or canned black beans?)  I hope you enjoy this take-off on her sauce.  I do 'adaptations' when I don't have all the ingredients in my pantry, or when something needs to be made free of the gluten ingredients in the original recipe.  

Sometimes I adapt because my husband and I prefer other ingredients to the ones listed.  In any case, here we go with the recipe:

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 C. (92 g) Lentils, green, brown or beluga
• 3 medium   Carrots (peel if not organic) each chopped into 4 big pieces 
• 1-2 C. (235 - 475ml) Water (I used 1 C. Water, 1 C. Ginger Tea)
• 2 T. (28 ml) Olive Oil
• 1/2 Small Onion, chopped
• 3 cloves Garlic, chopped
• *2 Cans (398 g each) Organic Tomato Sauce from Costco, Kirkland brand (or canned chopped Tomatoes)
• 1 1/2 tsp. dried Oregano
• 1 T. (2 g) dried Basil
• 1/2 tsp. Mexican Chili Powder (optional)
• 3 C. (about 201 g) fresh Kale, torn into small pieces, stems removed (optional)
• 1/2 C (87 g) well-rinsed Quinoa
• 2 T. (28 ml) Organic Balsamic Vinegar (or Fresh Lemon Juice)
• Celtic Sea Salt-Kelp Mix (see below) and Pepper, to taste
• Gluten-Free Pasta, cooked

METHOD:

• In large soup pot cook Lentils, Carrots, and Water until Lentils are soft (20-30 min.)
• Meanwhile, in Olive Oil in fry pan, saute Onions 5 minutes, Garlic 1 minute more
• After Carrots-Lentils are cooked, put Carrots in Food Processor/Blender and whirl up with Tomato Sauce, Oregano, Basil, Chili Powder, and Kale along with Onions and Garlic
• Add Quinoa and Vinegar to the Soup Pot with Lentils and bring to simmer with Medium heat, then cover and turn down heat to Low until Quinoa  starts to show their white tails.
• Add the puree to the Lentil-Quinoa combo and simmer on LOW until cooked through (20 min.)
• Each person can stir in a pinch of the Salt-Kelp mix and the Pepper can be ground on individually
• FREEZE left over sauce in muffin tins (scroll down to see)

CELTIC SEA SALT - KELP FLAKES

This combination is not a requirement of the recipe-- you can always just use regular salt.  But the flavour is soooo wonderful AND you get 82+ minerals.  We use and eat this mix with everything-- have not had "regular" table salt in our home for years.  I only started adding in the Kelp Flakes when I saw a pricey mix at the Health Food Store... do it yourself and save a bundle of $$.

I buy Celtic Sea Salt in the bulk section at the Health Store

                                                                 FROZEN TREATS

I freeze any left-over sauce in a Silicone Muffin Pan so they can be popped out easily and then I transfer them to a freezer ziplock-type baggy so that we can enjoy the sauce at future meals with little fuss but all the gourmet / home-made delight!