Spicy Red Lentil Dal

Vegetarian Times Issue: October 1, 2005 — Member Rating:

Serve this Indian dip with bread, or pair it with rice for a main course.

Ingredient List

Serves 6

• 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1 cup red lentils, sorted and rinsed
• 1 Tbs. vegetable oil
• 1 medium-sized onion, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
• 1 Tbs. tomato paste
• 1/2 cup light coconut milk
• 2 tsp. fresh lime juice

Directions

1. Bring broth and lentils to a boil in pot over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, partially cover and simmer 10 minutes, or until lentils are tender. Cover, and remove from heat.
2. Heat oil in nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and red pepper flakes; sauté 5 minutes. Add cumin, turmeric and coriander; cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add tomato paste, and cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add coconut milk and lentils, and cook 3 minutes more.
3. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and stir in lime juice. Serve over rice.

Nutritional Information

Per SERVING: Calories: 185, Protein: 11g, Total fat: 5g, Saturated fat: 1g, Carbs: 26g, Cholesterol: mg, Sodium: 273mg, Fiber: 11g, Sugars: 5g

CC Blog

To make it easier to find older recipes, I've set up some labels. If you could label your recipes with your name and the main ingredient such as beef, chicken, veg., etc. then searching for that fabulous meal that someone made last summer -- or was it fall? -- oh and it had chicken -- or was it turkey? -- in it ... well you get the picture!

Just put the label in the little box at the bottom of the post. Once you start typing, it will fill in for you.

Any other ideas on making this blog easier to use?

~Michele

Roasted Red Pepper Lasagna

Sauce:
4 cloves garlic - minced
3 shallots - chopped small
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 Tablespoons butter
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup vegetable broth (if you don’t mind chicken broth, it tastes better than veg broth)
3 - 4 jars roasted red peppers, drained (if you roast your own, I'd use 4 large peppers)

Heat butter and oil in a large pot over low/medium heat - add the garlic and shallots and cook for 2 - 3 minutes until they get soft. Don't use high heat. Add wine, broth and peppers and boil until there is very little liquid - this takes a long time. (I kind of chop up the peppers with my wooden spoon when I stir it periodically, or use an immersion blender, bul leave some chunks.)

Cheese filling:
32 oz ricotta cheese (regular or part-skim, all skim is too watery)
1/3 cup shredded parmesan
8 oz shredded mozzarella
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh herbs (I used chives, basil, thyme, and rosemary)
1 egg
a little salt and pepper, to taste

Combine all the cheese ingredients.

Sliced mushrooms, optional – I used 10 oz for 3 lasagnas, but you can use as much as you want. Saute in a little butter and cook until liquid disappears. Set aside.

Fresh baby spinach – I used 11 oz for 3 lasagnas, but recommend 5-6 oz for 1 lasagna. Steam in a little water until wilted. Run under cold water to stop cooking. Let cool a bit, then squeeze out water. Chop finely and stir into cheese mixture.

You will also need:
9x13 pan
9 lasagna noodles - I use the new no boil kind - Barilla brand.
8 more oz of mozzarella for top (better if you shred it yourself)
2 tablespoons of parmesan for top
1 Tablespoon of chopped basil for top

Layering the lasagna:
Coat the bottom of the pan with a thin layer of pepper sauce
layer of 3 lasagna noodles
half the cheese mixture
half of the mushrooms
1/3 of the remaining pepper sauce

2nd layer of 3 lasagna noodles
remaining cheese mixture
remaining cooked mushrooms - spread on layer
1/3 of the pepper sauce

3rd layer of lasagna noodles
the remaining pepper sauce
sprinkle the basil over the sauce
top with the mozzarella and parmesan cheese

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes with foil on. Remove foil and bake another 15-30 minutes. Watch it to make sure it doesn't overcook. Let the lasagna stand at least 10 minutes before serving.

Mushroom Barley Soup

Inspired by Moosewood, I made some changes to their recipe.

1 cup barley

6 cups water

2 cups stock (or you can use all stock)

4 cloves of garlic

1.5 cups of chopped onions

2 Tbls butter

1 lbs of sliced mushrooms

1 tsp salt

4 Tbls soy sauce

3 Tbls dry white wine

1/2 tsp rosemary

lots of pepper

Put barley and 2 cups of water in a large pot and set to boil - use the lid. Once at a boil, turn down and simmer for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a frying pan, melt butter and add onions. Saute about 5 minutes. Add mushroom and garlic. Saute until soft, about 10 minutes. Add rosemary, salt, wine and soy. Turn off the heat.

When the barley is done, add everything else to it and stir. Taste. If it needs more salt, try adding soy first and retasting. Barley can soak up a lot of salt without tasting salty.

Simmer about 20 minutes and serve with more black pepper.

For Casserole Club: This is fully cooked. Heat - taste for salt - and enjoy.