Lentil Salad

I love lentils! The lentils that I used in this recipe are considered French lentils and are dark green with speckles. In a salad lentils are best slightly firm and not overcooked. When lentils are cooked until soft they make for better stews, soups and curries.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 cups of water

1 cup of uncooked French lentils

1/2 small red onion

1 small red tomato

2-3 red radishes

2 bay leaves

4 sprigs of fresh thyme

1 sprig of fresh rosemary

2 garlic cloves

1 T olive oil

Dressing:

1 T olive oil

1 T white balsamic vinegar

1 T Dijon mustard

the juice of 1 lemon

Dice thyme, rosemary and garlic. Bring water to a boil with the bay leaves, thyme, rosemary and garlic cloves. Once the water reaches a boil, turn heat down to a simmer, add lentils, a pinch of salt and a tablespoon of olive oil. Cook for 20 - 25 minutes.

Stir together dressing ingredients in a large bowl. Coarsely chop tomato and red radishes. Chop red onion into long thin slivers. Add tomato, red radish and onion to the bowl of dressing and gently stir together.

Once the lentils are ready, drain them through a mesh colander so that the lentils and herbs don't fall out and allow to cool. At this point I added the lentils to the bowl while they were still warm and gently mixed the ingredients. Because the lentils were still hot, this gave the raw vegetables a sort of blanched effect. If you prefer, let the lentils cool and then stir together with the other ingredients. This salad can be enjoyed warm, room temp or cool.

Happy eating!

Health Benefits:

Lentils:

Lentils are super nutritious and low in calories. They are rich in fiber, iron, protein, potassium and vitamin B1 amongst other things. These legumes are good for helping to lower cholesterol, increase energy and manage blood sugar disorders. Lentils are not only good for you but also pretty...they come in brown, black, orange, red and yellow.

Note:

I think I actually might like this salad a little better without the Dijon added to the dressing. I like to taste the vegetables and herbs and felt the Dijon might be a little to obvious of a flavor.