Vegetarian Bolognaise

I received a request the other day for more vegetarian recipes, and I am certainly not one to ignore what my audience is after, so here you go!

This is a recipe I came up with many moons ago back in my vegetarian days, and I have to say it is still one of my favourites. The sauce is rich, thick and delicious just like a meaty bolognaise, and really easy to make. I tend to always have these ingredients lying around too, so it's a good one for when the fridge is looking a little bare.

1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 carrots, coarsely grated
1 400g tin diced tomatoes
2 400g tins chickpeas, drained & rinsed
700g passata (tomato puree)
1 cup water
1 tsp dried basil
2 tsp dried oregano
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp olive oil
Sea salt & ground black pepper
Grated tasty cheese, to serve*

In a large saucepan heat the olive oil over a medium heat and saute the onions and garlic until tender, then add the carrots, stirring occasionally for a minute or so until they soften. Next add the tomatoes, passata, water and chickpeas, stir to combine and bring to the boil.

Now reduce the heat down to a simmer, add the herbs and bay leaves and season generously with sea salt and pepper. Allow the sauce to simmer for 10-15 minutes or until it begins to thicken, then use a potato masher to squash all the chickpeas into a pulp.

Lastly remove the bay leaves and serve with your favourite pasta and a sprinkle of tasty cheese. I've used wholemeal penne pasta here, and think that it goes really well with the chunky sauce.

Serves 4-6.

*You can use parmesan or other cheeses if you like, but I find that regular old tasty cheese works really well.