October 30, 2007

Lentils Schmentils


According to John Robbins' The Food Revolution, people who eat beans, peas, or lentils at least twice a week compared to people who avoid these foods have a 50% lower risk of colon cancer. Awww, shoot, right? Who likes beans that much?

This recipe is easy and fast and flexible--include whatever ingredients you want. If you haven't kicked dairy, consider me somewhat jealous because feta would be a delightful addition.

Mediterranean Lentil Salad
2 cups lentils
4 cups water
Juice of 1 lemon
1 Tbl. umeboshi plum vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 Tbl. barley miso, dissolved in 1/4 cup water
1 tomato, chopped
1 Tbl. capers, chopped
1/2 can black olives, chopped
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

Rinse lentils. Combine with water, bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer 20 minutes or until cooked but not mushy. Add lemon juice, vinegar, olive oil and miso. Mix thoroughly. Let marinate while you chop and prep other ingredients. Mix all together. Serve hot, cold, or room temperature with greens, rice, or alone!

1 comment:

Unknown said...

This was tasty!! I should mention that I'm Michelle's boyfriend, who is not quite as health nuts as she is. So even judging this by "real" food standards, this is a good meal. That plum vinegar can be hard to find...sometimes its located in the Asian foods section of the store.