A Sassy Lentil Salad

Happy Monday!  Well it feels like I have been gone for a while but I am back in action now.  I was in Florida all last week (as you may know) working with a couple of clients and had lined up some great guest posts for your enjoyment.  During the week I also got a nice email from a new blog I have not yet heard of, keepitsimplefoods.com asking if they could guest post on zesty. Of course I said yes as I love to see guest posts and learn great recipes from other great foodies. So with that I give you a kicked up Lentil Salad from Jennifer and Jessica.

Inspired by Bella’s lentil salad, I decided to make my own version. I love lentils because they cook quickly, unlike other legumes, and they transition beautifully from season to season. For this recipe, I basically followed Bella’s method, but I mixed up some of the flavorings to make it more of an earthy, spicy dish. I also used japonica black rice instead of brown, but you could use any type of rice you like. The wonderful thing about this salad is that you can play with flavor combination’s to give this dish variety. You can also eat it hot or cold so it’s a perfect summer/winter food.

Ingredients

• rice (1 cup or enough for 1-2 persons)
• dry lentils-1/2 cup to 1 cup (rinsed and drained)
• handful of baby carrots chopped
• 1 clove garlic chopped fine
• 1 small onion chopped VERY fine
• 2 veggie bouillon cubes (these are easier than measuring out broth/stock)
• EVOO

Seasonings

• salt
• pepper
• cumin
• oriander
• chipotle pepper
• curry ( you could use anything you like)

Method

1. Cook rice per directions on stove with 1 bouillon cube in water for seasoning.
2. While rice is cooking, boil lentils on stove in a small pot with just enough water to cover, add bouillon cube to water.
3. Cook until lentils are tender drain and let cool. In a pan, saute garlic, onion, carrots with a splash of evoo, salt and pepper to taste.
4. Combine all ingredients in saute pan with spices.
5. Serve hot or cold.
6. Garnish with fresh lemon zest and Parmesan cheese.

Feel free to get creative with this dish. Use any veggies you like-mushrooms, shallots, asparagus, or maybe even throw in some tofu for protein. You could also season the dish with fresh herbs, like thyme and rosemary, or even a dash of apple cider vinegar. The possibilities are endless with this dish.

Zesty’s Back

I am back in business this week and ready to cook.  I also have a lot of design work to work through for other blogs and loving every minute of it. In addition to that – while I was gone the house made some terrific progress.  Stay tuned for a house update!

Take care

zesty

Related posts:

1. Curried Red Lentil Soup with Chickpeas and Quinoa
2. Pungent Pesto Pasta Salad Recipe
3. 5 Tips for Making a Great Salad
4. Beef, Beet Greens and Barbecue
5. Labor Day Potato Salad

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