It seems like lots of people want to initiate a healthy eating regime at the beginning of the new year, or at least magazines and TV tell us we do. Not me. I want to wallow in cold weather comfort food and never leave my house for the freezing, rainy, snowy, world that is January. But now it’s February, I’m ready to see a crocus and maybe consider that the beach is only about a month away. Perhaps a little attention to getting in shape wouldn’t be such a bad thing. It is, after all, American Heart Health Month and Valentine’s Day to boot. The thing is, it’s actually still cold - the pale lovely lettuce greens of summer aren’t around yet, my grill still has ice on it, and grocery tomatoes just don’t inspire. I remembered that just the other day a friend and I were reminiscing about a dish from a restaurant long gone, that had warm lentils, diced tomatoes, lots of spices and cheese. It was delicious and definitely unusual for Nashville at the time. It could be a perfect beginning for a salad in February when snow is still possible, so I gave the concept a shot.
The lentils I used were these pretty little green ones. The package said French lentils, but they didn’t seem any more très chic than other lentils. In fact, nothing fancy was involved; I simmered the lentils in vegetable broth with garlic and some pepper flakes. Here was the wow factor, at least for me – I used arugula for the real salad part of the dish. Arugula is just one of my favorite things to eat. It grows from seeds in our garden from May to December so in cold weather months, I rejoice in its availability at most grocery stores. Arugula has to be the king of the lettuce family, in fact it should be an honorary herb – the taste is so unique. Everybody likes arugula, my son, more spectacularly, my husband, and in fact, surprisingly, even a new family member fell in love with an accidental bite (see pic).
So that’s the base of the salad: warm lentils and arugula. At this point you could add a bunch of other stuff. I improvised with what was on hand, onion thinly sliced, grape tomatoes, and really good shaved Parmesan. The arugula wilted just a little bit with the lentils and really, the whole thing didn’t need much in the way of dressing, but I had a Christmas present bottle of flavored vinegar and it was just too tempting not to drizzle a little over the top. A few grinds of pepper and this masterpiece was perfection in the kitchen! I could happily eat this everyday. I’m no nutritionist, but this has to be good for you. You could enjoy Warm Lentil and Arugula Salad all by itself or paired with salmon like I did, or any fish, chicken, roast pork – or a lobster – it is Valentine’s Day after all. Oh, and don’t forget a glass of red wine – it is Heart Healthy Month too. Champagne for desert anyone?
Ingredients
1 cup dry lentils
2 ½ cups vegetable stock
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ tsp red pepper flakes
4 cups arugula (spinach is a good substitute)
½ onion, thinly sliced
1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1 wedge Parmesan cheese ( or use what you like) shaved with a vegetable peeler
¼ cup balsamic vinegar – flavored if preferred
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Bring broth, lentils, garlic and red pepper flakes to a boil.
Lower heat to a simmer and cook until tender, about 40 minutes depending on the size. (Can be done ahead and reheated)
To serve: Put a scoop of lentils on each of 4 plates. Top each with 1 cup arugula, onions, tomatoes, cheese, and drizzle with vinegar. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Enjoy!
YUM!!!
