Oh, January. Your detoxes, cleanses, juice fasts, diet commercials, and cellulite cream jeans are starting to get on my nerves. Just so you know I’m tuning you out, so don’t bother trying to lure me in with 6 easy payments or strict diet plans. It’s just not my thing. My approach to January – or any other month for that matter – is to eat food that makes me feel good and less of what doesn’t. But this approach doesn’t really sell, does it?
Soup, chili, and casseroles – these are the warm, comfort foods on my mind most days. Today, I’m sharing my take on maple baked beans, using hearty, chewy lentils for a fun twist. Lentils may seem boring to many, but I find them just the opposite. Their subtle flavour can blend into just about any vegan dish. Much like tofu, lentils are a great canvas for many different flavours, spices, and cuisines. I even adore them plain with a dusting of Herbamare and splash of vinegar. It’s a rather homely snack, but I’d devour the entire bowl before noticing.
Adding more fuel to my lentil loving fire – Canada is the world’s largest producer of lentils. It’s in my blood, eh? Their relative proximity, along with being a super cheap protein source, make them a regular staple in my diet. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that they are nutritional powerhouses too. One cooked cup provides around 17.86 grams of protein, 6.5 mg iron, and 15.64 grams of fibre (source) making it a stick-to-your-ribs plant food that can go the distance. Pair them with Vitamin C rich sweet potato and you’ll boost your iron absorption even more.
Maple Baked Lentils with Sweet Potato
Yield
4-6 servings
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
My spin on maple baked beans using hearty, chewy lentils! A bit of apple cider vinegar rounds out the sweetness of the dish and I encourage you to adjust the amounts to your own taste as you may like more or less pop from the vinegar. Serve this over some toasted bread, or even with a salad, and you have yourself a budget-friendly vegan meal during the peak of winter. To save on cook time, make the lentils beforehand and simply mix everything together and pop into the oven.
Ingredients
- 2 cups dry green lentils
- 1 sweet onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 sweet apple, peeled and diced (I used Gala)
- 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and diced small*
- 14-oz can diced tomatoes (about 1.5 cups)
- 2.5 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 2 tbsp blackstrap molasses
- 2 tsp regular mustard
- 1/2-1 tsp fine grain sea salt + ground pepper, to taste
- 1-2.5 tbsp apple cider vinegar, to taste
Directions
- Rinse and drain lentils. In a large oven-safe pot or Dutch oven*, add lentils along with 4 cups of water. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low-medium and simmer for about 30 minutes, uncovered, stirring often. Add more water if necessary. Lentils are ready when they are just tender (but not mushy) and most of the water is absorbed.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Add onion, garlic, apple, sweet potato, tomatoes (with juice), maple syrup, blackstrap molasses, mustard, salt, and pepper to the pot with the lentils. Stir well to combine. Add half of the apple cider vinegar (you’ll add the rest later if desired).
- Cover with lid (or tin foil in a pinch) and bake at 375°F for 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven, uncover, and stir. Bake for another 8-12 minutes, uncovered, until the sweet potato is tender. Stir in the rest of the apple cider vinegar if desired and season with salt and pepper to taste before serving.
- Serve over toasted bread or with a salad.
Tip:
If you don’t have an oven-safe pot or Dutch oven, simply transfer the mixture into a casserole dish and cover with tin foil before baking.
Dice the sweet potato small to decrease cook time.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)What are your favourite vegan comfort foods?
Just made this last week….soooo good and yields lots of leftovers. Good plain or on a roll with some BBQ sauce or drizzle of balsamic vinegar. This one got the thumbs-up from my carnivore husband. Thanks for the comfort food sans guilt :)
Oh my word. This is how much we loved your recipe. One million thank yous for filling my toddler’s belly with such goodness!
mamamandy.com/2013/02/15/want-your-kid-to-eat-lentils/
This was delicious! I’ve been wary of making lentils for awhile since my last attempt resulted in an unintentional lentil mush (I called it “soup”). But this turned out great! I love the baked-beans flavor combination combined with the sweetness of apples. It’s a wonderfully warming dish for this cold winter night. Thank you!
I have been becoming increasingly obsessed with this recipe since it first popped up on your site. I finally made it today. The flavor is great, but it doesn’t look anywhere as appetizing as your version. I think my mistake was using French green lentils?? I am not really up on my lentils, so I wasn’t sure…didn’t see any in the store that seemed to be just plain green lentils. The ones I used are pretty firm and lend a dark, not-so-pretty look to the dish. What lentils should I look for next time?
This turned out delicious! However, I had to add an extra half hour to the cook time to cook the sweet potato properly. I cut them pretty small too…
Before adding in the rest of the ingredients to the lentils, should I drain the water in the pot?
Hi Kate, there shouldn’t be any water left in the pot, but if there is then yes I would drain it out. Hope this helps!
I made this last week in the slow cooker and it turned out really well.
Made this tonight and OH! MY! HEAVENS! So yummy! Your blog is awesome and I can’t wait to try more of your delicious creations, Angela.
One question for you- have you tried freezing this casserole? If yes, does it freeze well?
Hi Alice, I’m sorry I haven’t tried freezing it yet. I generally find potatoes don’t freeze well, so I’d be hesitant to try it out. So glad you enjoyed it!
Hello, Angela!! My Math teacher from high school actually turned me on to your blog and I am proud to say that I am glad he did. I have been vegan for about a year now and I could not survive without your blog. I made this last night for my mom and I and boy was it AMAZING. You are so creative with what ingredients you decide to use. The flavors were so good! Oh and I love your enchilada recipe. That is a staple recipe in my house!!
Hey Payton, Im so happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know :)
No problem!! I think your hard work should be recognized! Also, I was wondering what your favorite recipe was? I know it’s kind of hard because you have so many to choose from hahhah but if you could narrow it down to one what would it be?
I made this tonight. First, let me say that I am not a fan of lentils…..but I LOVED this. It looked so yummy, and I love sweet potatoes, so I decided to give it a try. It was so delicious and filling. I brought a big container to a friend’s house tonight too, for them to try. Thank you for sharing such healthy recipes!
This was a great combo of sweet and savory type flavors. Super good. Sure, it might be better to warm ya up in the winter, but it is great in the summer, too!
Thank you so much for this recipe! It has become a favorite of mine. Just made it for my birthday tonight. It freezes well for me too. I just love all these ingredients and how they compliment each other so well, perfection!
Don’t know how small the sweet potatoes were supposed to be diced, but mine were barely bigger than the lentils and after the maximum time in the oven they are still pretty much raw. Now have nothing to feed my kids for dinner. Be prepared to add a LOT of extra cooking time.
Angela,
I am a big fan and follower of your recipes and look forward to getting your cookbook! One request… is it possible to include nutritional information on more recipes? Thanks – Deanna
Made this last night — it’s fantastic! I served it over baby greens. It is to DIE FOR! Thanks! :)
Eating this now and it’s a treat! I’ve only had lentils in a soup and this is a treat. Thanks for the great recipe!
This is one of my faves from this site! I add kale or spinach sometimes at the end if I have them (usually when they’re about to go bad). I’m not vegan, so adding a strip of sautéed bacon or a turkey sausage are delicious to add as well (I cook the onions, garlic together with the sausage and then add the apple, lentils, and everything else and into the oven. But if you use bacon start with that instead of olive oil). Definitely recommend roasting the diced sweet potatoes ahead of time for about 20 mins or else I find it takes FOREVER for them to cook through, I usually put them in while I start the lentils, so the timing works well.
Nice recipe. This was delicious. Easy to make too. Love lentils!
Tasty! I can always trust your recipes will be delicious. Have tried
many and enjoyed all of them. Great job!
This trumps lentil loaf! I added cooked frozen corn to
Enjoy sweet crunch with it. Next time I think I will put
In cut up spinach near the end. Also for sure make very.
Small diices with the sweet potatoes. It was filling enough
So I didn’t need bread or anything else with it.
Thanks again Angela for this winner!!!!