Vegan pasta bake in a baking dish with salad on the side

Vegan pasta bake

Name: Vegan pasta bake
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 2 tbsp olive oil; 500g chestnut mushrooms finely diced; 2 onions chopped; 4 garlic cloves crushed; 2 carrots grated; 2 celery sticks finely diced; 2 tsp rosemary leaves chopped; 1 tsp celery salt; ½ tsp smoked paprika; 1 star anise; 2 tbsp tomato purée; 250g cooked Puy, green or Beluga lentils; 2 roasted red peppers from a jar diced; 400g can of chopped tomatoes; 650g passata; ½ small bunch of basil chopped; 250g penne or rigatoni; 100g vegan cheddar-style cheese grated (we used Cathedral City Plant-Based); salad to serve

Janine Ratcliffe

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Serves 4 - 6

Easy

Prep: 20 mins

Cook: 1 hr

A star rating of 3.5 out of 5.2 ratingsRate

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Make an umami-rich vegan ragu with mushrooms and carrots, plus pre-cooked lentils to minimise prep time. Delicious baked in the oven with vegan cheese

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Try this recipe for a vegan pasta bake, then discover vegan mac and cheese, vegan lasagne, vegan carbonara and vegetable pasta bake. Now, discover more vegan pasta recipes.

Chef's tips for vegan pasta bake:

Use any short pasta you have to hand
Freeze the ragu and serve with spaghetti, or make ahead (up to 24 hours) for an easy midweek pasta bake
Leftovers will keep for 2-3 days in the fridge

Vegan pasta bake recipe

Ingredients

Nutrition

2 tbsp olive oil
500g chestnut mushrooms

finely diced
2 onions

chopped
4 garlic cloves

crushed
2 carrots

grated
2 celery sticks

finely diced
2 tsp rosemary leaves

chopped
1 tsp celery salt
½ tsp smoked paprika
1 star anise
2 tbsp tomato purée
250g cooked Puy, green or Beluga lentils
2 roasted red peppers from a jar

diced
400g can of chopped tomatoes
650g passata
½ small bunch of basil

chopped
250g penne or rigatoni
100g vegan cheddar-style cheese

grated (we used Cathedral City Plant-Based)
salad

to serve

Nutrition: per serving

kcal403
fat10.8g
saturates5.1g
carbs56g
sugars14.4g
fibre10.1g
protein15.6g
salt1.3g

Method

step 1

Heat a large non-stick frying pan until hot and add 1 tbsp olive oil. Fry the mushrooms and a pinch of salt until they start to soften and release liquid. Keep frying until all the moisture has disappeared and the mushrooms have turned dark golden brown (this will ensure you get maximum flavour in the finished sauce). Scoop out the mushrooms.
step 2

Add the onions, garlic, carrots and celery to the same pan with another tbsp of olive oil, and stir well. Cover with a lid and cook for 10 mins, stirring occasionally, until the veg has softened. Add most of the rosemary (keep ½ tsp for the top), the celery salt, paprika, star anise and tomato purée. Stir the mushrooms back in along with the lentils.
step 3

Cook for a minute then tip in the peppers, tomatoes and passata, and bring to a simmer. Cook for 20 mins until the sauce has thickened, then stir through the basil. While the sauce is simmering, cook the pasta in boiling salted water until just tender (it will cook further in the sauce). Drain and rinse under cold water, then drain again. Stir into the sauce and tip into a baking dish.
step 4

Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Scatter over the cheese and reserved rosemary, then bake for 20 mins until the cheese has melted and the sauce is bubbling. Serve with salad.

Try more vegan meal ideas.

Plate of tempeh stir-fry in focus with pan of it behind out of focus

Authors

Janine Ratcliffe in a short sleeved long dress sitting on a chair beneath palm trees on a balcony

Janine RatcliffeFood director

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A star rating of 3.5 out of 5.2 ratings

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