Passport to Paris

No, not the awesome Olsen Twin movie. I wanted to keep things simple tonight. Simple flavors with simple, inexpensive ingredients. Due to my recent food kick, all I had on my mind was yet another type of salad.


Warm lentil salad
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup lentils
- 1 1/4 cup water
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 whole garlic clove + 1 clove, minced
- 1 carrot, finely chopped
- 2 stalks celery hearts, finely chopped
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp tarragon
- 1/2 tbsp chives
- S&P
Vinaigrette
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 2 tsp dijon
- S&P

Instructions
- Combine dressing ingredients and shake or whisk to emulsify. Set aside.
- Bring lentils, water and whole garlic clove to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes or until lentils are tender and most of the water has absorbed. Set aside.
- Saute aromatics in 1 tbsp olive oil. Once they begin to soften, add lentils and combine to heat through. Place lentil mixture in a large bowl, add herbs and seasoning as necessary and toss with vinaigrette. Serve warm or at room temperature. Garnish with green onions if desired and enjoy!


This was lovely. Full of protein and nutrients, lightly seasoned and simply dressed. While I was eating it I almost felt like I was sitting in a French bistro. While I've never been to France and I know that French cuisine isn't exactly vegan friendly, I like that food can almost take me there.

After last night's whole roasted garlic, I wanted to roast something whole. Unfortunately I didn't have a complete head of garlic, but I did have a bunch of yellow onions in need of some roastin'.



This is so easy. Just preheat your oven to 400, cut off the root of the onions and poke a hole in the side of each and place them in a foil covered baking dish, then bake for an hour. Take off the foil during the last 10 minutes of cooking. Allow to cool for a few minutes then slit them open and pour your desired sauce in the center.


I filled mine with a quick balsamic reduction. I would have preferred the reduction to be more...reduced...but my onions were ready to go and my stomach was growling before the sauce had a chance to fully thicken. Thankfully it still tasted out of this world good. I implore you to whole roast onions.

I'm off to do some yoga and watch Lucy Desi Comedy Hour until I drop. Au revoir!