served with tomato sauce, these lentil balls are an amazing condiment for spaghetti, but they are also very good with some veggies as a siding and some bread to dip in the sauce!

we learned this recipe form cucina botanica. check out her website for other delicious vegan stuff!

quantities for 4 portions / 20 balls

for the lentil balls

ingredients

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• lentils: 300g boiled, or 130g raw dried
• onion: 1/2
• garlic: 1 clove
• dried tomatoes: 4
• breadcrumbs: 5 tablespoons
• soy sauce: 1 tablespoon
• extra virgin olive oil: 2 tablespoons
• salt and pepper

procedure

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1. if they are not canned, boil your lentils: find our suggestions for cooking pulses here.

2. in a blender, mix the onion, the garlic, the lentils, the dried tomatoes, the soy sauce, the olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. mix very well until you reach a smooth texture.

3. add the breadcrumbs one spoon at a time mixing with a spoon: they will help make the balls stick together and reach a firmer texture. once you can make nice balls stop adding the breadcrumbs. if you add too much, your balls will fall apart: in this case add a little bit of water.

4. make the balls pressing them with your hands and dispose them on a baking trail covered in parchment paper.

5. cook in preheated static oven for 20 minutes at 220° C, turning them after 10 minutes.

6. while the balls cook, make the sauce.

for the tomato sauce

ingredients

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• tomato purée: 700g
• garlic: 1 clove
• extra virgin olive oil
• sugar: 1 teaspoon
• salt

procedure

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1. mince the garlic and sauté in the olive oil.

2. add the tomato purée with a teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of sugar (that will make the sauce less acidic).

3. after 20 minutes the sauce will be ready.

4. before gently adding the balls to the sauce, let them cool down for a few minutes: they will become more compact and will not get undone in the sauce.

5. serve with bread or with spaghetti!