| Eating Cool in the Summer Heat | |
by Therese Harris, from the July 2003 newsletter
At our house, we like cool, quick suppers during the summer—that way we can spend more time outside just enjoying the season. The basis of many of our easy suppers is a lentil salad. The only thing to cook is the lentils, and you can use whatever fresh veggies followed you home from the Co-op, or are lurking in the fridge. It can be as simple as the following ‘basic salad’ as a side dish or as complex as you feel like, with added cold pasta or rice for a complete meal. I always make up a big batch that keeps us from having to cook again for a couple of nights (and gives me lunch to take to work, too)! I especially like using the smaller brown lentils (‘Pardinas’) or the tiny black Beluga lentils--they cook even more quickly than regular lentils and hold their shape better for salads, too. Try cooking them with a sprig or two of fresh rosemary and a couple cloves of garlic for even more flavor complexity.
This ‘basic’ salad is from The Pea & Lentil Cookbook published in 2000 by the USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council, located right here in Moscow. The cookbook is available at their state line office (at the east edge of Moscow on the Moscow-Pullman Highway, right behind the “Welcome to Washington” sign), online at <pea-lentil.com>, or at BookPeople in Moscow.
Our favorite variation of this salad includes a bit of shredded carrot, green onions, chopped purple cabbage and small shell pasta. But feel free to try your own favorite fresh, crunchy vegetables tossed with the lentils, feta and balsamic vinegar. And use fresh herbs to really taste the summer!
Greek Lentil and Feta Vinaigrette Salad
1/4 cup olive oil
1/3 balsamic vinegar
Juice of 1 lemon, strained (about 2 Tbsp.)
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced
2 cups cooked lentils, cooled (about 3/4 cup dry**)
3 Tbsp. Feta cheese, crumbled
salt and pepper to taste
In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients except the lentils and feta cheese. Add lentils and gently toss to mix. Cover the bowl and let stand at room temperature for about 1/2 hour before serving (or refrigerate overnight).
Just before serving, add salt and pepper, toss lightly again to mix, and top with the feta.
**To cook dry lentils, first pick over and rinse the lentils. Cook the lentils in roughly twice the volume of water as volume of dry lentils. Gently simmer lentils until just tender. Start testing the lentils for doneness at about 10 minutes for the small lentils and 20 minutes for the regular lentils. When done, drain and cool the lentils. (Note: 1 cup dry lentils yields roughly 2 1/2 cups cooked lentils.)
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