Full Gastronomic Tilt

Flip. flip. Flipflip. flip. Cookbook after cookbook. I had agreed to whip something up for a 10 person gathering - mostly vegetarians, one vegan, one gluten allergy. I thought something hearty, warming and fulfilling would be appropriate before extended discussion involving, among other things, community building.

What’s more communal than soup? What’s more friendly, vegan and gluten-free than lentils? Just as Laurie Colwin says - there are hundreds of ways to make lentil soup, and they’re all good.

Dish decided, I pondered strategy. My beloved Red Lentil Soup with Carrot and Coconut Milk seemed fussy, so I nixed it. Hmm…my recipe binder had a rather good, straightforward lentil soup recipe. But Casual Kitchen’s Easiest Lentil Soup caught my eye - whole cloves? In the end, I went with my recipe (included at the end), but tossed the cloves in as a lark. The effect was subtle but noticeable, an undertone of sweet warmth. Happily, the soup was met with raves, served with gluten-free cornbread, sesame kale and a spinach salad. I always forget about cornbread - so delicious spread with butter or Earth Balance, a fabulous complement to hearty soups.

Remember: Soup makes people happy. Unless they aren’t soup people. (”I just made a huge pot of fragrant, rich, zuppa toscana! It has BACON in it. Why aren’t you grinning from ear to ear and gripped with ecstasy? Sigh. Here, have some chicken.” True story.) Heathens.

Less than a week later, I discovered a glass jar of (I think) duPuy lentils. Small, dark, almost blue-green in color. Beautiful. Time to try a recipe that’s been kicking around in the back of my brain and making noise, mujadara.

Pronounced Moo-jzah-dra and not moo-jah-dara, it has just three ingredients: lentils, onions and half a cup of basmati rice. Dead simple. The only unique aspect of this dish is that the onions are finely diced and caramelized. Mujadara is RIDICULOUSLY delicious. I used Orangette’s recipe, because Molly’s blog introduced me to this dish, years ago. There are tons of variations on this dish out there, as it is a Middle Eastern staple. Some cautioned against using duPuy lentils, but I found they retained their shape and texture much better than green lentils. Phooey to them.

Why, why, why did I hold off making mujadara for so long (almost three years)? Because I was a doubting Thomas. There was no way a three ingredient dish could be that tasty. I was wrong. Please don’t make the same mistake. Serve it with a generous squeeze of lemon and a bit of salt. I lightly sauteed some baby spinach and stirred it in at the end. Yum. This dish will get you through to spring, I promise.

Lentil soup, a pantry dish if there ever was one
(original inspiration due Giada De Laurentiis)
serves 8-10

Ingredients

5 cups vegetable broth
5 cups water
1 3/4 cups green lentils
1-2 T olive oil
2 sweet or yellow onions, large dice
1 28-ounce can diced or crushed tomatoes
4 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
4 carrots, diced
4 garlic cloves, pressed
6 whole cloves
3 sprigs fresh thyme (~2 tsps dried)
2 bay leaves
at least 1 tsp salt
lots of black pepper
up to 1/4 cup cider vinegar and/or lemon juice
Parmesan cheese, optional

(More options, you say? Add white wine, balsamic vinegar, red pepper flakes, sausage, spinach….)

Directions

Heat the oil in a very large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots and celery and saute until softened, about 8 minutes.
Add the garlic and saute 1-2 minutes.
Add the tomatoes with their juices and simmer about 5 minutes.
Add the lentils, water/broth mixture, bay, thyme, whole cloves, stir it up and bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes -1 hour.
Add salt, pepper, 2 Tablespoons of cider vinegar and the juice from one wedge of lemon. Stir, taste and adjust as your palate desires. I needed more salt and more lemon, but your mileage may vary.
Sprinkle with Parmesan if you like.

Serve to a hungry crowd!