Red Lentil Stew with Hasselback Potatoes

March 17, 2017March 17, 2017 / thuddirect / 2 Comments

This a simple and delicious red lentil stew full of spinach and tomatoes and accompanied by a refreshing cucumber yoghurt and served with tasty baked potatoes.

Ingredients: 250g potatoes, 6-10 red cherry tomatoes, 2 cloves of garlic, 1/2 a chilli, 2 shallots, sprig of oregano, handful of spinach, 2 stems of basil, ½ cucumber.

From the larder: 80g red lentils, 1 tin chopped tomatoes, ½ cup yogurt, oil, salt and pepper.

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. To make the hasselback potatoes: thinly slice half way through the potatoes at 3mm intervals, rub with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and place in the oven on a baking tray
Place lentils in a pot of cold water, bring to the boil and simmer until soft, approx. 10 mins.
Chop shallots, garlic, chilli (if you like it spicy – it also tastes fine without) and sauté on a low heat until translucent and then add the tin of tomatoes.
Chop oregano and tomatoes. Add to the pan, season and let simmer.
When lentils are soft, drain and add to bubbling tomatoes and cook for a further 5-10 mins.
Grate or finely chop ½ the cucumber and mix with yogurt in a bowl.
Just before serving the lentil stew, stir in chopped spinach and basil and allow to wilt.
Serve with hasselback potatoes and cucumber yogurt. Add grated cheese as an optional extra.

Roasted Veg with Lentils and a Kumquat Dressing

January 18, 2017January 23, 2017 / thuddirect / Leave a comment

Nothing much can beat roasted veg. We have a new found love of brussel sprouts, and roasting them makes them all the more delicious. They are roasted along with beetroot, carrots; all served with lentils and a tasty kumquat dressing.

Ingredients: 2 carrots, 150g brussel sprouts, 1 beetroot, a few stems of flat parsley, 4-5 kumquats.

Larder: 100g puy lentils, ½ a stock cube, olive oil, 1 tsp honey/sugar (optional extra: grilled salmon or chicken).

Instructions:

Trim the ends and peel off the outer layer of brussel sprouts. Quarter the sprouts and chop the beetroot and carrots into small chunks.
Place in a roasting tin, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast for 25-30 minutes.
Cook the lentils in 3 times their volume of water, crumble in half the stock cube and cover. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20-25 minutes until lentils are soft, but still have a little bite to them.
If using, grill salmon or chicken while the lentils and veggies cook.
While the lentils are cooking and veggies roasting, make a kumquat dressing. Without peeling, thinly slice the kumquats, place in a small sauce pan and cover with water (approximately 150ml), add 1 tsp honey or sugar and simmer until slightly syrupy. Taste for sweetness and add more honey/sugar if desired.
Chop flat parsley leaves.
When veggies and lentils are ready, mix the parsley into the roasted veg and serve on a bed of lentils with the kumquats on top.

Red Lentil Stew

October 4, 2016September 14, 2017 / thuddirect / Leave a comment

This is a simple stew of tomatoes, spinach, lentils and warming herbs served with rice or a baked potato and accompanied by a minty yoghurt. What’s not to love?

Serves 2

Ingredients: handful of cherry tomatoes, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 red chilli, 2-3 shallots, small bunch of oregano, large handful of spinach, 5 basil leaves, small baby cucumber.

From the larder: 150g rice or 2 baking potatoes, 100g red lentils, 1 tin chopped tomatoes, ½ cup yoghurt, oil, salt and pepper (optional: grated cheese).

Instructions:

Start cooking the rice or baking potatoes in preheated oven (180 degrees C). If using potatoes, allow up to an hour for them to bake.
Place lentils in a saucepan of cold water, bring to the boil and simmer until soft, approx. 10 minutes.
Chop the shallots, garlic and chilli (use half or a whole chilli if you like it spicy – it also tastes fine without). Sauté on a low heat until translucent and then add the tin of tomatoes.
Chop the oregano leaves and quarter the tomatoes. Add to the sauté pan, season and let simmer for 5-10 minutes.

When lentils are soft, drain and add to the tomatoes along with 50ml of water and cook for a further 5-10 minutes.
Grate or finely chop the cucumber and mix with yoghurt in a bowl.
Chop the spinach and basil leaves and just before serving the lentil stew, stir them in allowing them to wilt.
Serve the lentil stew with rice or baked potatoes and cucumber yoghurt on the side. Add grated cheese as an optional extra.

Warm Fig Salad

August 16, 2016September 11, 2017 / thuddirect / 1 Comment

Serves 2

Ingredients: 2 figs, 1 head of chicory, 1 purple carrot, 1 orange carrot, smal handful of walnuts (allergen), small handful of chopped coriander, small handful of chopped mint.

Larder: 150g Puy lentils, 2 tsp honey, 4 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar, pinch of salt, (optional extra: 50g goats cheese, 2 slices of bacon chopped into bits).

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.
Start cooking the Puy lentils/rice or a mixture of the two according to packet instructions.
Quarter the figs, peel and chop the carrots into 1cm chunks and place both in a roasting dish. Drizzle with a glug of olive oil and 2 tsp honey. Place in the oven and roast while you prepare the rest of the salad for 15-20 minutes until softening and caramelising.
Make a dressing by whisking together 4 tbsp olive oil, balsamic vinegar and salt. Cut the cheese into pieces, chop mint and coriander leaves and walnuts in small pieces.
Break the chicory leaves from their core and slice the larger leaves in half, length ways. If using, cook the bacon pieces.
On two plates make piles of salad starting with lentils, chicory, walnuts, coriander, mint and cheese, followed by the roasted carrots and figs and optional bacon. Pour over the dressing and serve.