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These Marry Me lentils might just become your new favorite cozy dinner. Green lentils simmer in a Tuscan-inspired sauce infused with garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, and plenty of dried herbs, then get finished with a splash of cream for a rich, creamy consistency! Savory, seriously comforting, and ready in about 40 minutes.
I’ve been trying to incorporate more legumes into our meals lately, and since we’ve been slightly obsessed with all things Marry Me, combining lentils with that creamy, Tuscan-inspired sauce seemed like a no-brainer.
This recipe is based on the same sauce I’ve been making over and over lately, and I can’t seem to get tired of it. It works so well with green lentils! Plus, unlike most dried beans, which can take quite a while to cook (without even mentioning having to soak them), green lentils are ready in roughly 20 minutes. A lifesaver on weeknights!
➜ More from the series: Marry Me Chickpeas, Marry Me Pasta, Marry Me Tofu, and Vegan Marry Me Chicken!
⭐️ What Makes Them So Good
- They’ll convince the lentil skeptics. I hear you, green lentils don’t exactly sound like the most exciting thing for dinner, especially when they’re simply boiled with a pinch of salt. That’s why this recipe takes them up a notch. Here, they simmer in a garlicky, herby, tomato-infused sauce until they soak up all those delicious flavors. One bite might just turn you into a lentil fan (or make you love them even more!)
- They’re easy enough for a weeknight. No complicated technique or ingredients here. Just like the other recipes in my Marry Me series, this one comes together pretty quickly. Cook the lentils, sauté the garlic and aromatics, add the vegetable broth and cream, then toss in the cooked lentils and let everything simmer together for a few minutes. That’s pretty much it!
🍅 Ingredient Notes
Here are the ingredients you’ll need. You can find the exact measurements in the recipe card located at the bottom of this post.
- Lentils – I went with French Puy green lentils, but regular green or brown lentils work as well.
- Garlic – Fresh garlic only here! Don’t substitute with dried garlic.
- Sun-dried tomatoes – Use oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes. They are softer, more flavorful, and you can use the infused oil to add extra flavor to the sauce.
- Vegan butter – To sauté the garlic and infuse the sauce with a buttery flavor.
- Dried herbs – Oregano and thyme.
- Vegetable broth – It makes the base of the sauce, bringing savoriness.
- Plant-based cream – You can pick one of two options: store-bought plant-based cream or homemade cashew cream. I like to use Flora plant cream to save time, but you can find my homemade cashew cream recipe below.
- Spinach – For freshness and to add a bit more texture. Baby spinach or regular spinach, both work. If you’re using large spinach leaves, remove the stems as those can be tough and fibrous.
Can you use frozen spinach? Yes! Let it thaw for 15-20 minutes before using.
Homemade cashew cream: If you want to make your own plant-based cream, soak 1/4 cup of raw cashews overnight. Drain them and blend them with 1/2 cup of water.
🥣 How to Make Marry Me Lentils
- Cook the lentils. Add the lentils to a saucepan and cover them with water. Bring to a boil, and simmer until tender.
- Drain them. Using a colander, drain the green lentils and set them aside.
Note: I prefer to cook the lentils separately for a simple reason: consistency! When you cook them directly in the sauce, the lentils absorb quite a bit of liquid as they cook. You then have to keep adding more vegetable broth or cream to prevent the sauce from getting too thick, which can give you a slightly different result every time.
Cooking them separately prevents that. It’s only once the lentils are tender that you simmer them in the sauce so they can soak up all of the flavors.
- Melt the butter. Heat the butter and oil from the sun-dried tomatoes jar in a deep skillet.
- Sauté the garlic. Add the minced garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the sun-dried tomatoes. Next, add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes, tomato paste, and dried herbs.
- Sauté. Stir well and sauté for about 30 seconds.
- Combine everything. Add the drained cooked lentils, vegetable broth, plant-based cream, and spinach.
- Simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes or until the sauce has thickened. You can adjust the cooking time to your preference, depending on how thick you want the sauce to be.
📔 A Few Tips
- Don’t overcook the lentils. Depending on the type of lentils you use, you may have to slightly adjust the cooking time. Read the package instructions and check the texture of the lentils toward the end of the cooking time. You want them tender but still holding their shape.
- Adjust the saltiness. Since some vegetable broths are saltier than others, you’ll have to adjust the saltiness. I suggest starting with just 1/4 teaspoon of salt and adding more after tasting.
- Turn it into a soup. If you prefer a soupier consistency, cook 3/4 cup of lentils instead of 1 cup.
- Make a big batch. If you want to have leftovers for a few days, you can easily double this recipe. Simmer the lentils and the sauce in a large pot or Dutch oven instead of a skillet.
🥖 Great Pairings
While we sometimes enjoy these lentils on their own in a bowl, they also pair very well with:
- Crusty bread, garlic bread, banh mi bread, or croutons.
- Jasmine rice, brown rice, or farro.
- Mashed potatoes or polenta.
- Or a simple green salad.
- Bonus: Sprinkle the lentils with vegan parmesan for a delicate cheesy flavor!
Add extra protein
One serving already packs 19g of protein, but if you want to make it even more filling, you can serve the lentils topped with smoked tofu, vegan chicken, vegan sausages, or smoked deli slices.
❄️ Storing
You can store these Marry Me lentils for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. They won’t thicken much, but feel free to add a splash of vegetable broth or plant-based cream to loosen them.
Can you freeze Marry Me lentils?
Yes. You can transfer leftovers to freezer-safe containers and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight before reheating them in a saucepan.
💬 FAQs
Yes. You’ll need about 19 ounces (338 g) of cooked lentils for one batch of this recipe.
Yes. Brown lentils are a good substitute. They have a similar cooking time to green lentils.
You can replace the cream with unsweetened plant-based milk, but the sauce won’t taste as rich.
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Marry Me Lentils
Ingredients
- 1 cup (225 g) dry green lentils
- 4 cup (960 ml) water
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) oil from the sun-dried tomatoes jar
- 1 tbsp (14 g) vegan butter
- 5 cloves of garlic (minced)
- 1/2 cup (60 g) chopped sun-dried tomatoes (patted dry to remove excess oil)
- 1 and 1/2 tbsp tomato paste
- 3/4 tsp dried thyme
- 3/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/4 and 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 cup (240 ml) vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) plant-based cream (Such as soy or cashew cream)
- 1 cup (30 g) packed spinach
Instructions
- Cook the lentils. Rinse the lentils and drain them. Transfer them to a deep saucepan and cover with 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook them partially covered for 18-22 minutes, or until tender.Drain them using a colander and set aside.
- Sauté the garlic. Heat the butter and oil from the sun-dried tomatoes jar in a deep skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the minced garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the sun-dried tomatoes. Next, add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes, tomato paste, dried thyme, onion powder, dried oregano, red pepper flakes, and salt. Stir well and sauté for about 30 seconds.
- Combine everything. Add the drained, cooked lentils, vegetable broth, plant-based cream, and spinach. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring regularly, until the sauce has thickened. Note: You can adjust the cooking time to your preference, depending on how thick you want the sauce to be.
- Serve with crusty bread, Jasmine rice, or a green salad! You can store these Marry Me lentils for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
Notes
Nutrition
About the Author
Thomas Pagot is the founder, photographer, and recipe developer behind Full of Plants. He created the blog in 2016 as a personal cookbook for vegan recipes. Through years of recipe development, Thomas has successfully grown Full of Plants into a trusted resource for plant-based recipes.
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