My Mumsy came to visit this weekend, always the problem of what to feed a meat eater when you’re a vegetarian…. But I had been flicking through one of my books this week, looking for something to cook that wasn’t the same thing over again.

This recipe caught my eye, and although it uses 1kg (!!) of spinach…. I thought we would give it a whirl!

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Lentil and Spinach Gratin Recipe – taken from Rose Elliot’s New Complete Vegetarian

Ingredients

225g split red lentils
575ml (1 pint) water
1kg spinach
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
225g tomatoes, skinned and sliced
75-125g grated cheese

Method

Cook the lentils in the water for about 20 minutes or until they’re soft and pale in colour.

Meanwhile, wash the spinach and cook it in a saucepan, without additional water, for 7-10 minutes or until melted down (note: I had to do it in two halves as it was a LOT of spinach!)

Drain off the excess liquid and chop the spinach, then season with salt and pepper.

Preheat the oven to 190C/375F.

Put the spinach into a lightly oiled shallow ovenproof dish and arrange the tomatoes on top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Season the lentils, and then spoon over the tomatoes and spinach, spreading to the edges of the dish.

Top with a layer of grated cheese.

Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes, or until golden on top.

Dish up!

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It was quite nice, definitely needs the cheese though. I would’ve like a bit more lentils.

Mr M loved it, and said I could make it again.

Mumsy was dubious as we were making it (as she often is with vegetarian food), but also liked it and might even take the recipe home with her!