Lentil and potato pasta (the best lentils in the world)

When we were at S's in Italy last winter, we bought a packet of 'the best lentils in the world' from Santo Stefano di Sessanio. I just remembered them around New Year, because apparently lentils (along with a big fat sausage) form part of the traditional Italian New Year's feast. We didn't eat ours at New Year, but we had some with Amy on Jan 2nd, and the rest I made into this. I found a bit of paper with a few recipes in Italian in the packet from the lentils - I attempted to translate it, and this is the result. It was deceptively simple-looking, and very tasty, like a lot of real Italian food.

200 g small green/brown lentils
2 cloves garlic, 1 whole / 1 peeled and chopped
1 bay leaf
salt
2 tbsp olive oil 
4 medium tomatoes, diced
4 medium potatoes, approx. 2 cm dice
pasta

Put the lentils in a saucepan with 1 clove garlic, bay leaf and a little salt, and boil for about 25 min. Drain, reserving the liquid.

Heat olive oil in a frying pan, add chopped garlic and tomatoes and cook for a few minutes. Add a little salt and the liquid from cooking the lentils (and more water if needed), and the diced potatoes. Halfway through cooking, add the lentils.

While the lentils are cooking, bring a pan of salted water to the boil and cook enough pasta (your choice of shape) for 2 people. Stop cooking halfway through, drain, and pour pasta into the pot of lentils. Simmer until the pasta and the potatoes are well cooked.

Crunchy rice carpet with lentils, onions and pomegranate

I went to Cambridge to see Dad, S and B a couple weeks ago. I hadn't realised when I planned it, but it was so close to Christmas that it made a lovely Christmas warm-up. I got to have my first (probably only) mince pie of the year, and we ate well, played games and exchanged presents (still wrapped though!). I also got to buy a Saturday Guardian for the first time in years. This has been frustrating - it is available in Europe but they don't put the supplements in, so irritating. So anyway, I am still reading it on and off. And I came across a recipe for stuck-pot rice and thought why not just spend the afternoon making that because I can? I didn't really follow the recipe, but I liked my version.

rice:
180 g brown basmati rice, soaked for 1 hour
60 g butter
A few pinches saffron threads, soaked in 1 tbsp boiling water

lentils:
1 1/2 cups brown or green lentils
1 tsp allspice
1 bay leaf
2 1/2 cups water

onions:
1 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, thinly sliced
salt+pepper
1 tsp pomegranate molasses

to serve:
pomegranate seeds (optional but lovely)
yoghurt
chopped coriander (optional)

Bring a deep pan of salted water to a boil and cook the rice for about 15 min until al dente. Drain, then briefly rinse in water. Wipe out the pan, then melt the butter in it, and pour into a cup. Return the drained rice to the pan, stir in half the melted butter, then smooth the top of the rice. Pour over the remaining butter and saffron, cover with a clean tea towel, put on the lid and cook on the lowest heat for 30-40 min, until the rice is cooked, with a golden crust on the bottom.

While the rice is cooking, cook the lentils and onions. For the lentils, put them in a pan with allspice and bay, cover with water and bring to the boil, then simmer low until water is gone and they are done. For the onions, heat oil in a large frying pan, then add onions and cook medium-low for about 30 min, until they are brown and soft/crispy in places. Add pomegranate molasses and seasoning to taste.

To serve, put crunchy rice in a bowl and add lentils, onions, pomegranate seeds, yoghurt and coriander. Yum.

Warm lentil and onion salad

My stepmother S makes a simple lentil salad that I love. I think it is Indian-influenced (she is half Indian). It is Puy lentils, with crispy fried onions and dollops of thick yoghurt on top.

This recipe reminded me of S's lentil salad. I didn't feel like making exactly either of those, but something closely related, simple, but with enough complication to be exciting.

To cook the lentils:
1 cup green or brown lentils
1 large clove garlic, peeled and sliced into three
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp olive oil
water

To toast in a dry pan:
2 tsp coriander seed
1 tsp cumin seed
2-3 tbsp sesame or sunflower seeds

For the onions:
1-2 tbsp olive oil
2 small onions, peeled and finely sliced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

For the dressing:
juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 tbsp tahini
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1-2 tbsp water
2-3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1-2 tsp salt

Also:
zest of 1/2 a lemon
2-3 tbsp mint leaves, chopped
1 cup cooked, defrosted chickpeas
fresh tomatoes, chopped

First, put the lentils on: put lentils, garlic, bay leaves and olive oil in a small pan with enough water to cover the lentils by about 1cm. Cover the pan and simmer until lentils are done (20-30 min / will vary depending what kind of lentils).

As soon as the lentils are on start the other preparations. Dry fry the cumin and coriander until fragrant, then tip them out into a bowl and set aside. Do the same with the sesame/sunflower seeds, transferring them to a different bowl. Then heat the olive oil in the same frying pan, add the onions and garlic, cover and cook gently until the onions first soften then start to go sweet, brown and crispy/melty.

To make the dressing, grind the toasted coriander and cumin and tip it into a serving bowl. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, tahini, salt, balsamic vinegar and water and mix to a good consistency. When the lentils and onions are done, add them to the serving bowl along with the chickpeas and lemon zest, and mix everything together thoroughly. Finally, add the mint and seeds, toss, and serve with fresh tomato and more balsamic to taste, on brown rice.


It is an ugly brown mess, but it is delicious. Good balance of fresh (lemon, mint) with deep and earthy (lentils, tahini), sweet (balsamic, onions), and toasty spices (coriander+cumin). Nice textures too - the crunch of seeds alongside the robust squish of cooked pulses. Best warm, fine cold the next day.

St. Patrick's Day: Mushroom-stout shepherd's pie

Really, this is an effort to use up various odds and ends of things laying around - the fridge, freezer and pantry have all been feeling rather full lately. So, leftover mash and the stout from this, plus some carrots, mushrooms and parsley that needed eating, the last of a jar of tomato puree, stock I couldn't fit in the freezer, a couple of odd ends of packets of pulses... It all came together surprisingly well to make a pie packed with powerful, punchy flavours: a very St. Patrick's Day kind of a thing. About as close as I'm ever going to get to green beer and leprechaun hats, despite living in Boston.

For the topping:
~ 2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 tbsp wholegrain mustard
1 tbsp white miso
1 tbsp fake butter
2 tbsp olive oil
~1-2 tbsp fake milk
salt+pepper

For the insides:
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced
~10 mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1-2 tbsp paprika
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp dried chilli flakes
3 tbsp mushroom powder (hedgehog+chanterelle)
1 cup crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato puree
1 cup stout
1 1/2 cups veg stock
1 tsp dark mushroom soy sauce
1 tbsp vinegary red wine
3/4 cup chana dal
3/4 cup brown lentils
salt+pepper


To make the filling, heat the oil in a large, lidded saucepan, then add the onions and fry, covered, until starting to soften (a few minutes). Add the garlic and the carrots, cook a few minutes more, then uncover, add the mushrooms and cook until they turn dark and give up their liquid. Add the spices and dried herbs and saute until fragrant. Add the remaining ingredients, taste for seasoning, then cover and simmer until the pulses are tender (about 40 min).

Meanwhile, heat the oven to 400F. Make the topping: cover the potatoes with water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 15-20 min, until tender. Drain and mash with a fork until smooth, then add the remaining topping ingredients and continue mashing until a good, smooth consistency. Taste for mustard and seasoning.

When the filling is cooked, pour it into an ovenproof dish and level out. Splodge the mashed potato mixture on top and level it out, patterning it with a fork if you like. Put into the oven for about half an hour, until the potato is starting to brown and the filling is bubbling up. Remove from the oven and let sit for 10 min before eating.

Colourful, robust winter salads

We ended up eating at / from Whole Foods quite a lot while we were out West. It was S's idea. We arrived in Vegas and had one very uninspired meal with awful service, and then he had the idea of looking for local Whole Foods (apparently his buddy who runs learning-to-play-poker courses there stocks up at Whole Foods before getting going on the poker). We found a huge one in Henderson, and that was us sorted for the next few days.

A recurring Whole Foods salad theme was mixed grains and pulses. Which put me in the mood for more on our return. Here are a couple of variants:


Giant couscous, lentils, rice, cranberries and pumpkin seeds

3/4 cup giant / Israeli couscous, cooked in 1 cup water with 1/4 tsp turmeric for colour
1/2 cup brown and/or wild rice, cooked in 1 cup water
3/4 cup brown lentils, cooked in 1 1/2 cups veg stock with a bay leaf
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
~8 salty black olives, chopped
~2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
olive oil
red wine vinegar
salt+pepper
wholegrain mustard
maple syrup

Mix olive oil, vinegar, mustard, maple syrup and seasoning in a medium bowl to make the dressing. Add the cooked, cooled couscous, rice and lentils and toss. Add the cranberries, pumpkin seeds, olives and coriander and mix up again. Taste to check seasoning / that there is enough dressing.


Massive couscous (moghrabieh), chickpeas, beetroot and sesame

3/4 cup moghrabieh, cooked in 1 cup water with 1/2 tsp turmeric for colour
1 cup chickpeas, cooked and defrosted
2-3 medium beetroot, boiled until tender, cooled and diced into ~1 cm dice
~2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
1 tsp white sesame seeds
1 tsp black sesame seeds
1/2 tsp nigella seeds
juice of 1/2 lime
olive oil
red wine vinegar
salt+pepper

Put the pre-cooked and cooled couscous, chickpeas and chopped beetroot in a bowl, add the seeds and coriander and toss. Then add the dressing ingredients: oil, vinegar, lime juice, salt+pepper, quantities to taste (use plenty), toss and eat.

Lentil curry with beetroot raita

This was what I felt like making when I got home through the rain.  I wasn't going to bother with the raita but then S wasn't home yet and I was waiting for things to cook and I thought yeah, why not.

250g large brown lentils
60g fresh ginger or galangal (used galangal), peeled and roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp ground coriander
3 tsp garam masala
2 small red chillies
1 tsp ground turmeric
2 tbsp veg oil
1 medium onion, finely sliced
400g can chopped tinned tomatoes

For the raita:
200g soft silken tofu
4 tbsp beetroot, coarsely grated
coriander, chopped
juice of 1/4 lime

Bring the lentils to the boil in a pan of deep, unsalted water, then let them simmer for 20-25 minutes, until they are quite soft.

Put the galangal into the blender with the garlic, cumin seeds, ground coriander, garam masala, red chillies, ground turmeric and enough water to make a soft, but not runny, paste.

Peel and finely slice the onion.  Warm a tbsp or two of oil in a medium saucepan over a moderate heat.  Add the onion and let it colour, stirring occasionally.  Then add the paste and stir / cook til fragrant.  Then add the tinned tomatoes and a can of water, salt, and the drained, cooked lentils and leave to simmer for half an hour or so. The lentils should be soft but still retaining a little of their texture; the sauce thick.

To make the raita, blend the tofu until smooth and put in a small bowl with the other ingredients and gently fold the beetroot through the smooth tofu with a fork (don't over mix).


We ate it with brown rice, and it was good.  Homely and comforting and exciting all at once.  Glad to use some galangal at last.  And the tofu-beetroot raita turned out way better than I expected.