Dishes from Lent essentially ashes? (7)
I believe the answer is:
entrees
'dishes' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'lent essentially ashes?' is the wordplay.
'essentially' indicates the central letters.
'ashes?' becomes 'trees' (ash is a kind of tree).
The middle of 'lent' is 'en'.
'en'+'trees'='ENTREES'
'from' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for entrees that I've seen before include "Dishes" , "Admittance" , "Main courses" .)