Beetroot and Lentil Salad with Rose Petals

So I got given a box of rose petals. I had no idea what to do with them until the Waitrose Weekend Newspaper thing offered a few suggestions. One of them was to sprinkle them over a beetroot salad, so I duly accepted. I'm not sure that the rose petals added anything taste wise but they were very pretty!

Beetroot and Lentil Salad with Rose Petals
(Seves 1)

60g dried puy lentils
1 medium beetroot, cooked and cut into chunks
salad leaves
25g feta or goat's cheese, crumbled
parsley, tarragon, basil, chopped
1 tbsp rose petals
french dressing

Cook the lentils according to packet instructions and leave to cool.

When the lentils are cool, mix with the beetroot.

Put the salad leaves into a bowl and top with the lentils and beetroot. Sprinkle over the cheese followed by the herbs and rose petals. Pour over some french dressing and serve. If you are using a lunchbox to take to work, then pack the dressing separately and pour over the salad just before eating.

Curried Sweet Potato and Lentil Stew

I wanted something super healthy when I came out of hospital, so I helped my Mum make this delicious curried lentil and sweet potato stew. It was lovely comfort food and the yoghurt really cut through the flavours.

Curried Sweet Potato and Lentil Stew (from Love and Lemons)
(Serves 4)


1 tbsp oil
½ onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
½ tsp fresh ginger, minced
1 large sweet potato, chopped
2 tsp curry powder
¼ tsp ground cardamom
150g dried red lentils
1l vegetable stock
125g chopped green beans
75g frozen peas, thawed
120g spinach
juice 1 lime, plus extra lime wedges for serving
juice ½ small lemon
pinch chilli flakes
small bunch coriander, chopped

for the Yoghurt Sauce
125g greek yoghurt
½ tsp extra-virgin olive oil
squeeze lemon or lime juice
salt and pepper

Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and a few pinches of salt and pepper and cook for about 5 mins until soft. Add the carrots, garlic, ginger, and sweet potatoes and stir. Add the curry powder, cardamom, and season. Stir again and cook until the spices are fragrant, about 1 min. Add the lentils and stock. Reduce the heat and simmer until the carrots and sweet potatoes are soft, 20 to 30 mins.

Meanwhile, mix together all the ingredients for the yogurt sauce.

Use an immersion blender (or a potato masher) to coarsely blend the stew. Add the green beans, peas, and spinach and cook for another few mins. Add the lime juice, lemon juice and chilli flakes and stir to combine.

Divide into 4 bowls and sprinkle with coriander. Serve with the yoghurt sauce.

Frenchie Salad

I made this salad a long time ago but I completely forgot where I got the recipe from! I made something else from the Save With Jamie book and came across it again. It was a lovely fresh tasting salad and I used the first French beans from my garden to make it.

Frenchie Salad (from Save with Jamie - Jamie Oliver)
(Serves 4)

250g puy lentils
extra virgin olive oil
cider or white wine vinegar
2 spring onions, finely sliced
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp runny honey
2 large eggs
200g French beans, timeed
200g leftover cooked chicken, shredded
4 sprigs tarragon
1 large round lettuce, shredded

Cook the lentil according to packet instructions, then drain, reserving a little cooking water. Return both to the pan and mix in a lug each of oil and vinegar. Season and leave with the lid on to keep warm.

Put the spring onion, garlic, mustard, honey, 1 tbsp vinegar, 3 tbsp oil and a pinch of alt and pepper. Mix well to make a dressing and set aside.

Boil the eggs in a pan of boiling water for 6 mins, then scoop out with a slotted spoon and run them under cold water to cool.  Add the beans to the water to blanch for 4 mins or until just cooked. Drain the beans, and while they're still hot, toss with a little dressing, the chicken and tarragon leaves.

Put the lettuce into a large bowl and tip the warm dressed lentils on top. Sprinkle over the dressed beans and chicken, drizzle over the remaining dressing and toss together. Divide between 4 plates. Peel and quarter the eggs and pop them on top of the salad. Serve.

Squash and Lentil Curry

To go with the Saag Paneer I made a Squash and Lentil Curry, it was gently spicy rather than mega spicy but the flavour was delicious.

Squash and Lentil Curry (from Oh She Glows)
(Serves 4-6)

1 tsp oil
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tbsp curry powder
1l vegetable stock
200g red lentils
1 butternut squash, cooked
fresh grated ginger, to taste
salt and pepper

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onion and garlic. Saute for about 5 mins over a low-medium heat.

Stir in the curry powder and cook for another couple of mins. Add the stock and lentils and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 mins.

Stir in the cooked butternut squash and cook over a medium heat for about 5-8 mins. Season with salt, pepper, and add some freshly grated ginger to taste.

Salmon with Lentil and Couscous Salad

I had a great deal on fish from The Saucy Fish Company last week and one of the things I bought was roasted lemon and herb salmon. I used one of the fillets to make this delicious salad to take for lunch on Monday. Simple to make and lovely and flavourful.

Salmon with Lentil and Couscous Salad
(Serves 1)

30g puy lentils
30g giant couscous
1 heaped tsp pesto
handful cherry tomatoes, halved
1 spring onion, sliced
salad leaves
1 salmon fillet, cooked

Bring a pan of water to the boil and cook the lentils according to packet instructions, add the couscous the right amount of time before the end of the lentil cooking time (check the packet). Drain and run under the cold tap, drain again well. Stir through the pesto.

Put the salad leaves in the bottom of a dish and top with the lentil mixture. Top with the cherry tomatoes and spring onion and then the salmon. Serve.

Carrot, Parsnip and Lentil Casserole

This used up some of the parsnips from my veg bag. It was a lovely comforting dish, warming on a cold night.

Carrot, Parsnip and Lentil Casserole (from Noshing with the Nolands)
(Serves 4)

1 tbsp oil
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 parsnips, peeled and sliced
1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
½ cup red lentils, rinsed
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp finely chopped coriander
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper
600ml vegetable stock
2 medium potatoes
2 tbsp milk
1 tbsp butter

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Add the oil to a large pot and saute onion and garlic until soft. Add the carrots and parsnips to the pan along with the stock and bring to a boil. Add the lentils, herbs and spices. Simmer covered for 20min. or until the vegetables are tender and the lentils are cooked.

Meanwhile, peel and chop potatoes and cook in boiling water until tender. Mash with the milk and butter and season with salt and pepper.

Spray a ovenproof dish with cooking spray. Mix the kidney beans into the large pot with the carrot mixture and transfer to the ovenproof dish.

Spoon the mashed potato onto the vegetables. Put into the oven and bake for 30 mins until the mash is crisp on top.

Spicy Root and Lentil Casserole

I made this on Friday night when it was freezing cold, it was a lovely warm me up dish and I did as suggested and served it with naan bread.

Spicy Root and Lentil Casserole (from Good Food Magazine February 2003)
(Serves 4)

2 tbsp sunflower or vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic clove, crushed
700g potatoes, cut into chunks
4 carrot, thickly sliced
2 parsnip, thickly sliced
2 tbsp curry paste or powder
1l vegetable stock
100g red lentils
small bunch fresh coriander, roughly chopped
low-fat yogurt and naan bread, to serve

Heat the oil in a large pan and cook the onion over a medium heat for 3-4 mins until softened, add the garlic and cook for another min. Tip in the potatoes, carrots and parsnips, turn up the heat and cook for 6-7 mins, stirring, until the vegetables are golden.

Stir in the curry paste or powder, pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, add the lentils, cover and simmer for 15-20 mins until the lentils and vegetables are tender and the sauce has thickened.

Stir in most of the coriander, season and heat for a min or so. Top with yogurt and the rest of the coriander. Serve with naan bread.

Curry Lentils with Halloumi

I finally made this dish, it's been hanging around on my meal plans for several weeks and kept getting bumped. It was really tasty although for me it could have done with a little more heat so I might add in a little cayenne pepper or chilli powder next time.

Curry Lentils with Halloumi (from The Roasted Root)
(Serves 4)

300g uncooked green lentils
2 tbsp oil
½ onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1 tbsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground turmeric
¼ tsp cardamom, optional
¼ tsp cayenne pepper, optional
½ tsp salt
1 400g can coconut milk
140g halloumi, chopped into 1 cm cubes
2 tbsp chopped coriander

Cook the lentils according to the packet instructions.

While the lentils are cooking, heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the onion and saute, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 to 8 mins. Add the garlic, ginger, and all of the spices and salt. Stir and cook for 2-3 mins. Add the coconut milk and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat slightly and simmer for 10 mins, until the sauce has thickened slightly.

Stir the cooked lentils into the sauce and cook, stirring occasionally for 3 to 5 mins. Add the cubed halloumi and cook until the halloumi is warmed through, about 2 mins. Stir in the coriander and serve over rice.

Hot Mustard Lentils with Beetroot and Spicy Sausages

Looking for an interesting way to use up merguez sausages I came across this recipe using lentils and beetroot. I cheated a little and used ready cooked beetroot that I heated up in some foil in the oven for about 20 mins, making this a really quick and easy meal. It was also really satisfying.

Hot Mustard Lentils with Beetroot and Spicy Sausages
(from Good Food Magazine January 2015)
(Serves 4)

500g raw beetroot
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large red onion, cut into wedges
2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
1 tsp caraway seeds
8 merguez sausages
2 x 250g pouches ready-cooked puy lentils
75g watercress, stalks removed

For the dressing
4 tsp Dijon mustard
juice 1 lemon
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Heat oven to 180C. Top and tail the beetroot, then cut into wedges. Put the beetroot in a roasting tin, drizzle over the olive oil and toss with the onion, garlic and caraway seeds. Roast for 45 mins until the beetroot is tender and the onion is sticky and charred.

Heat the grill and cook the sausages until golden. Make the dressing by whisking together all the ingredients. While the beetroot is still warm, toss with the lentils and dressing.

Put the watercress into a bowl, top with the beetroot and lentils and serve with the sausages on top.

Lentil Sloppy Joes

I would recommend using something other than red lentils for this! Red lentils seem to end up too, well, sloppy and just squeezed out of my sandwich. They were fantastic and lightly spicy. I think I'm going to serve the rest over rice!

Lentil Sloppy Joes (from Lemon and Basil)
(Serves 6)

1 cup dry lentils
½ tbsp coconut oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 onion, finely chopped
1 red pepper, finely chopped
1 400g tin chopped tomatoes
6 tbsp tomato paste
1½ tbsp chili powder
½ tbsp cumin
1 tsp smoked paprika
¼ tsp sea salt
½-1 tsp black pepper
½ tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp mustard
1 tbsp honey
6 hamburger buns

Rinse and sort the lentils then cook according to the package instructions.

While the lentils cook, add the coconut oil. Add onions and bell peppers and cook until onions are translucent, approximately 3-5 mins. Add the minced garlic to pan and cook over medium heat for 1-2 mins.

Then add the cooked lentils to the onion and peppers and cook for 2-3 mins to heat through.

Meanwhile, add diced tomatoes, tomato paste, all seasonings (chilli powder, cumin, smoked paprika, salt and pepper), apple cider vinegar, mustard and honey to a food processor, blender and blend for 20-30 seconds or until smooth. Once sauce is well mixed and smooth, add it to the lentil and veggies and stir over medium-low heat until hot.

Divide out for sandwiches, I used approximately ½ cup (American measure) of sloppy joe mixture per sandwich and got six servings.

Chicken with Lentils and Rosemary

I thought that this would be bland and tasteless but actually it turned out to be a very tasty little dish.

Chicken with Lentils and Rosemary (from River Cottage Light and Easy)
(Serves 4)

2 tbsp oil
1 large onion, sliced
4 garlic cloves, chopped
leaves from 2 sprigs rosemary
200g lentils
500ml chicken or veg stock
8 chicken thighs
salt and pepper
parsley

Preheat the oven to 180C. Put a casserole on a medium low heat. Add the oil, then the onion and cook, stirring regularly, for 6-8 mins until it begins to soften. Add the garlic, rosemary and some salt and pepper. Cook gently for a further 5 mins, then stir in the lentils and stock.

Season the chicken thighs and place skin side up in the casserole. Bring to a simmer on the hob, then transfer to the oven and bake uncovered for 1 hour. The chicken should be cooked through and the lentils are soft. If not return to the oven for 10-15 mins.

Serve scattered with chopped parsley with steamed greens and broccoli.

Red Lentil and Spinach Soup

I have a large packet of red lentils just sat in my cupboard so I'm trying to find things to do with them. The first of these recipes is a lentil and spinach soup with a lovely fresh hit of lemon.

Lentil and Spinach Soup (from Kahakai Kitchen)

(Serves 4)

1 tbsp olive oil
2 brown onions, finely chopped
1 tsp ground cumin1 tsp ground coriander200g red lentils
750g vegetable stock
1l water
juice and zest 1/2 lemon
300g baby spinach, roughly choppedsea salt and black pepper

Heat a large saucepan over a medium-high heat. Add the oil, onion, cumin and ground coriander and cook for 6 mins or until the onion is well browned. Add the lentils, stock, water and lemon zest and bring to the boil.
Cover and allow to simmer for 15 mins or until the lentils are soft. Squeeze in the lemon juice and stir through the spinach.. To serve, stir through the salt and pepper , then ladle the soup into mugs or bowls. Serve.

Jamie's 15 Minute Meals: Lamb Lollipops with Curry Sauce and Rice andPeas

This was deceptively easy, the recipe looked very complicated but wasn't at all. I've find that a lot with these Jamie recipes, the ingredients list is very long but the recipe is really simple if needing quick work to get everything ready on time. This one was absolutely delicious and just the idea of lamb lollipops is so cool! I am still a bit dubious about adding uncooked lentils to the rice and then only cooking them for five mins but it doesn't seem to have done me any harm!

Lamb Lollipops with Curry Sauce and Rice and Peas

(from Jamie's 15 Minute Meals)

(Serves 4)

Rice and Peas
300g basmati rice
8 cloves
40g dried red split lentils
300g podded raw or garden peas

Lamb
8 large lamb cutlets on the bone, trimmed of fat
1 tbsp garam masala
olive oil
4 spring onions
1 fresh red chili
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger
4 jarred red peppers
1 heaped tsp runny honey
balsamic vinegar
3 sprigs of fresh coriander

Curry sauce
2 tbsp korma paste
1 400g tin of light coconut milk
1 lemon

Garnishes
2 uncooked poppadoms
fat-free natural yoghurt

Put 1 mug of rice and 2 mugs of boiling water into the medium pan with a pinch of salt and the cloves, then put the lid on, stirring occasionally. Rub the lamb with salt, pepper and the garam masala, bash and flatten them with your fist, then put into one of the hot frying pans with 1 tablespoon of oil, turning when gnarly and golden brown.

Put the korma paste and coconut milk into the other frying pan with the juice of 1/2 a lemon, stir together, bring to the boil and simmer for five minutes, then turn the heat off. Mix the lentils into the rice. Trim and slice the spring onions, chili, peeled ginger and peppers, then toss in with the lamb. Stir the peas into the rice and lentils.

Pour half the curry sauce into a bowl (pop the rest in the fridge to use another day). Break up the uncooked poppadoms and pop in the microwave (800W) for a minute or two to puff up. At the last minute, toss the lamb with the honey and a splash of balsamic. Serve the lamb scattered with coriander leaves and scrunched-up poppadoms, with the rice and peas, yoghurt and lemon wedges on the side.

Pig's Cheeks with Barley and Wholegrain Mustard Lentils

Another old fashioned comfort food dish. Well the meat is old fashioned, the barley and lentils less so. It really was delicious and a bit of a change from serving slow cooked cuts with mash and veg.

Pig's Cheeks with Barley and Wholegrain Mustard Lentils

(Serves 4)

12 pig's cheeks

seasoned plain flour

1 tbsp oil

100ml white wine

275ml beef or chicken stock

200g pearl barley

100ml olive oil

salt and pepper

30g butter

225g puy lentils

1 bay leaf

100ml double cream

2 1/2 tbsp wholegrain mustard

70ml lemon juice

2 onions, finely chopped

2 celery stalks, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 tbsp chopped parsley

grated zest 1/2 lemon

Flour the pig's cheeks well. Heat the oil I'm a frying pan over a medium high heat and fry the cheeks until coloured. Add the wine and 250ml stock. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to very low, cover and cook gently for about 2 hours. If the cheeks start to dry out add a bit more liquid.

Bring an of water to the boil and add the barley, cook according to packet instructions. Drain, stir in 80ml oil, salt and pepper, and 2 tbsp lemon juice while the barley is still warm.

Put the remaining olive oil and half the butter into a saucepan over a medium heat and gently sauté the remaining onion and celery until soft but not coloured. Add the lentils, bay leaf and 450ml water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and simmer for 20 mins or until tender. Drain and remove the bay leaf.

Put the cream in a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the mustard, the remaining lemon juice and seasoning. Add the lentils and stir everything together.

Plate the barley and lentils. Top with the pig's cheeks drizzled with the cooking juices. Serve.

Morroccan Carrot and Lentil Salad

I made this lovely salad for lunch. The original salad doesn't have any lentils in it, but I wanted something a little more substantial and added them. It was delicious, lightly spicy and the carrots were still crunchy.

I used my own carrots from my garden, lovely and purple!

Morroccan Carrot And Lentil Salad (adapted from Plenty - Yotam Ottolenghi)

(Serves 4)

1kg carrots

80ml olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 250g packet cooked puy lentils

1 tsp caster sugar

3 garlic cloves, crushed

2 green chillies, crushed

1 spring onion, finely chopped

1/8 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp ground coriander

3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp sweet paprika

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tbsp white wine vinegar

1 tbsp chopped preserved lemon

40g chopped fresh coriander

120g Greek yoghurt

Peel the carrots and cut them into 1cm thick pieces, depending on the size, they should all roughly be the same size. Place them in a large saucepan and cover with salted water. Bring to the boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for about 10 mins, or until tender but still crunchy. Drain in a colander and leave to dry out.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and sauté the onion until soft and slightly brown. Add the cooked carrots and lentils to the onions and then the rest of the ingredients apart from the coriander and yoghurt. Remove from the heat, season with salt, stir well and leave to cool.

Before serving stir in the coriander. Serve with a dollop of yoghurt, a drizzle of olive oil and some extra coriander.

Jamie's 15 Minute Meals: Lamb Kofta Curry with Fluffy Rice, Beans and Peas

This month, the Daring Cooks challenged us to think inside the box - the icebox, that is! Audax taught us some really cool tips and tricks for stocking our freezers with prepare-ahead meals that can keep our taste buds satisfied even during the busiest of times.

This is another one of Jamie's tasty 15 Minute Meals, still didn't take 15 minutes but it was very tasty. This really was worth making, I've definitely had a run of really good meals recently, it was a very decent curry. It was also suitable for freezing and therefore good for Daring Cooks this month! Curries freeze really well, I often make big batches of things and freeze things in portions for later use.

Lamb Kofta Curry with Fluffy Rice, Beans and Peas

(adapted from Jamie's 15 Minute Meals - Jamie Oliver)

(Serves 4)

1 250g ready cooked puy lentils

1 heaped tsp garam masala

400g lean lamb mince

1 tbsp oil

3 ripe tomatoes

1 thumb size piece of ginger, peeled

2 spring onions, trimmed

1 red chilli

1 bunch coriander

1 tsp tumeric

1 tsp runny honey

2 heaped tsp rogan josh curry paste

1 200ml can light coconut milk

4 tbsp fat free natural yoghurt

1 lemon

1 mug (300g) 10 min whole grain or basmati rice

5 cardomom pods

200g green beans

200g frozen peas

Put the lentils in a bowl with salt, pepper, garam masala and mince, the mix and scrunch together with clean hands. Divide the mixture in half, then with wet hands quickly squeeze and mould each half into 6 fat fingers. Put them into a hot frying pan with 1 tbsp oil, turning when golden.

Put 1 mug of rice, 2 mugs of boiling water and the cardamom pods into a saucepan on a high heat and cover with a lid. Squash the tomatoes into a liquidiser, add the ginger, spring onions, half the chilli, coriander stalks, tumeric, honey, curry paste and coconut milk, the blitz until combined. Pour into the kofta pan, bring to the boil, then simmer and season to taste.

Take the lid off the rice, add the peas and beans, mix it all up and give it just a few more minutes. Finely slice the remaining chilli and coriander leaves and scatter them over the curry, dollop with yoghurt then serve with lemon wedges and the rice, beans and peas.

Lentil and Spinach Pie

This was a spur of the minute make with leftover spinach from a different recipe. It was a nice cosy pie, I made half the recipe and it only to 30 mins to cook, so I'd keep checking on it. It felt really healthy with all the veg as well. I used red pepper instead of celery in the original recipe.

Lentil and Spinach Pie (adapted from Kitchen Diaries II - Nigel Slater)

(Serves 6)

2 onions, diced

2 carrots, diced 

1 red pepper, diced

oil

350g mushrooms, chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely sliced

2 bay leaves

3-4 short sprigs thyme

500g jar lentils

500ml vegetable stock

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

500g spinach

1kg floury potatoes

75g butter

 

Heat the oil in a casserole over a medium heat for 10 mins until the onions are golden and almost tender. Add the mushroom and the garlic and stir in to the veg. Add the bay and thyme and then the lentils, together with their bottling liquid, and stir briefly. Pour in the stock, bring to the boil then turn down the heat and leave the mixture to simmer for 20 mins, season with salt, pepper and the balsamic vinegar.

Peel the potatoes, cut them into pieces and boil until tender about 15-20 mins. Drain well, then mash with the butter. Beat hard with a wooden spoon until light and fluffy.

Preheat the oven to 200C. Wash the spinach and whilst still wet, pile 450g into a pan with a lid and let it steam, with an occasional stir over a high heat for a couple of mins until it starts to collapse. Cool under the cold tap, then wring them out and stir into the lentils. (Don't be tempted to add the spinach raw to the lentils, it will produce a lot of water as it cooks and make lentil soup). Fold the remaining spinach into the mash potato.

Spoon the lentils into a baking dish and top with the potato in large rough spoonfuls. Bake for an hour until the edger are bubbling.

Lentil and Leek Kedgeree Salad with Smoked Mackerel

This was such a different salad. Not something I would ordinarily make but it really appealed and it was really tasty and I would assume fairly healthy too. I served it over lettuce.  I also love the A Salad For All Seasons book, it's given me so many ideas for packed lunches.



























































Lentil and Leek Kedgeree Salad with Smoked Mackerel
(From A Salad For All Seasons - Harry Eastwood) (Serves 6)


4 tbsp oil
450g dried puy lentils
6 leeks, finely sliced
8 cardamom, husks removed, bashed to a powder
2 cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
4 bay leaves
2 tsp ground allspice
2 tsp medium curry powder
salt and pepper
large handful parsley, roughly chopped
600g smoked mackerel fillets, skinned and flaked
3 hard boiled eggs, quartered
4 spring onions, chopped
1 lemon, cut into 6 wedges
pinch cayenne pepper
8 tbsp sour cream
handful chives, snipped


Heat 3 tbsp oil in a large pan and fry the lentils, leeks, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon sticks, bay leaves, allspice and curry powder over a low heat for 20mins.


Add 700ml water to the pan and cover with a lid. Cook for 30 mins until the lentils are cooked and there is no water left in the pan.


Discard the bay leaves, cinnamon sticks and cloves. Adjust the seasoning and a tbsp of oil.


Fork the lentils and leeks to help them cool down before adding the parsley, smoked mackerel, eggs and spring onions.


Squeeze over the lemon juice and sprinkle with cayenne pepper before adding a blob of sour cream and sprinkling chives over each portion.

Chicken Tikka, Lentil, Spinach and Naan Salad

I've been going a bit crazy with Jamie's 15 Minute Meals book recently. I don;t much like the 30 minute one only finding a couple of recipes to make from it, but the 15 minute one is so much better. This salad was lovely and filling and refreshing all at the same time. I did fiddle with things a bit. I didn't bother with the cashews in the dressing and I used salad leaves instead of spinach as my garden has an abundance of lettuce at the moment. This on is definitely worth trying.

Chicken Tikka, Lentil, Spinach and Naan Salad (from Jamie's 15 Minute Meals)
(Serves 4)

Chicken

2 x 200g skinless chicken breasts

2 heaped tsp Patak's tikka paste

4 chestnut mushrooms

 

Salad

4 spring onions

1 fresh red chilli

1 heaped tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

olive oil

1 250g pack of ready-to-eat Puy lentils

1 ripe tomato

red wine vinegar

1 big bunch of fresh coriander

2 lemons

4 tbsp fat-free natural yoghurt

1 heaped tbsp cashew nuts

1 heaped tbsp mango chutney

1 tsp turmeric

2 naan breads

200g baby spinach

1/2 a cucumber

1 carrot

30g feta cheese

On a large sheet of greaseproof paper, toss the chicken with salt, pepper and the tikka paste. Fold over the paper, then bash and flatten the chicken to 1,5cm thick with a rolling pin. Place on the hot griddle pan with the halved mushrooms, turning after 3 or 4 minutes, until nicely charred and cooked through. Trim and finely slice the spring onions and half the chili.

 

Put the mustard and cumin seeds and 2 tablespoons of oil into the frying pan, followed by the sliced spring onion and chili. Tip the lentils into the pan, squash in the tomato and add a punch salt and pepper and a splash of red wine vinegar. Toss occasionally for a couple of minutes, then turn the heat off. Rip the coriander stalks in the liquidizer with the juice of 1 lemon, the yoghurt, cashews, mango chutney and turmeric, then whizz up until smooth.

 

Remove the cooked chicken and mushrooms from the griddle and put the naan on the pan. Tip the baby spinach on to a serving board or platter, scatter over the lentils, speed-peel the cucumber and carrot over the top and sprinkle over the mushrooms. Slice the chicken, naan and remaining chili and arrange on top, then crumble over the feta and spoon over the dressing. Finish with the coriander leaves and serve with lemon wedges.

Lentils folded into Yogurt, Spinach, and Basil

I had a small amount of lentils at the back of my cupboard, nothing more than a 1 person serving. This was the perfect recipe to use them up.It was quick and simple and tasty. I served it over lettuce in a wrap but it would be just as nice, as the original recipe suggested, over some sourdough bread. Or if you're not a fan of carbs, just the lettuce.

Lentils folded into Yogurt, Spinach, and Basil (from 101 Cookbooks)
(Serves 4)

70g pine nuts or chopped walnuts
85g baby spinach or arugula, sliced
40g basil leaves, sliced
120g cooked lentils
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
juice 1 lemon
250g plain Greek yogurt
3tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

Heat a small frying pan over a medium heat. Add the pine nuts or walnuts and cook until lightly toasted, 5 to 7 mins. Lay them out on a chopping board to cool, then chop them roughly to the size of the lentils.

Place the lentils in a bowl and mix in the spinach, basil, parsley, and garlic. Squeeze the lemon into the lentils, mix, and then fold in the yogurt. Mix again, and then pour in the olive oil, stirring, as you do, to combine. Season. Finally, fold the nuts into the dish, and finish with a drizzle of oil.