Thanks to Sasha and Jennifer, I’m officially in good company when it comes to food repetition/legume adoration. That is to say, I am officially on a lentil kick… I’ve eaten them every day for the past week, maybe longer. Today was no exception – green French lentils gently stewed in vegetable broth with diced red bell peppers, celery, red onion, and tons of diced garlic, made extra spicy with crushed red pepper and chili powder, and finished with just a touch of good olive oil and vinegar and chopped parsley. On a more technical/logistical level, this is such a tempting meal when you live by yourself, mostly because it’s made in one pot and can be nibbled at / modified over 3-4 days. Lentils are so forgiving. On a more aesthetic/sensorial level, it’s the perfect blank canvas for flavors. The possibilities are endless.
A quick search in my archives pulled up a bunch of lentil-related recipes, like here and here and here and here. My fondest memories are of the daal – one of my favorite comfort foods.
Unfortunately I didn’t bake that beautiful little mini-ciabatta roll myself, but one of my resolutions for the year is to learn how to make bread. Does anyone have some tips for some easy/non-intimidating recipes to start with?? HELP!
1. get the tassajara bread book.
2. before doing anything in there, make the moroccan bread recipe from paula wolfert’s “cous cous, & other good food from morocco” book.” only one 2 hour-ish rise, so easy + unbelievably delicious (fennel seeds + sesame get kneaded in towards the end).
EXCELLENT. thanks for the recommendations. i’m sure my first few attempts will be failures but the temptation of having fresh bread is one that cannot be resisted.
Hey N – just found your blog! Those lentils look delicious! For easy, gorgeously perfect bread baking, I recommend going straight for the No-knead bread recipe. http://www.sullivanstreetbakery.com/recipes
amazing – thanks for the link! i have been meaning to make that bread since forever. it’s my kinda work ethic – lazy/simple.