Jars and jars of LENTILS! What can I do with them?!

Soup!

Love carrot and lentil soup Or lentil dall?

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=257885

No need to soak lentils - you can just throw them into a soup or stew but remember that they absorb liquid, so be sure to add enough to your recipe. Red ones turn mushy after about 10 mins; green take about 20mins to become firm but soft.

Does your soup mix have instructions? I would guess that you could just throw it in the pot, but am less sure about dried peas than lentils...


My fave lentil recipe is:

LENTIL AND SWEET POTATO BAKE

Boil 150g dried green puy lentils in 1 pint vegetable stock and drain once cooked but firm in shape - reserve a little of the stock for later. Set aside.

At the same time, boil a mixture of cubed 8oz sweet potato and as much swede as you want to chuck in, until soft. Drain and mash with 1 fl oz skimmed milk, a pinch of salt and a lot of black pepper. Set aside.

Saute gently in 15ml olive oil: 2 fat bulbs garlic (crushed), 1 large onion (chopped finely), 1 large pepper (de-seeded and chopped), 1 chilli pepper (chopped finely) and 1 carrot (chopped finely). When softened add in a large handful of button mushrooms (sliced) and saute until softened.

Add to the saute pan 1 can chopped tomatoes and the drained lentils. Add a little of the stock and then simmer until the juices are reduced to quite a thick consistency. Finally, stir in a handful of fresh chopped tomatoes and a handful of chopped coriander and cook for a further minute.

Transfer the lentil mixture to a large ovenproof dish. Top with the sweet potato mash and bake in a hot oven for 30 mins.

Notes:
Puy lentils are best because they hold their colour and their shape well. Ordinary green lentils or brown ones would be fine, but best not to use the red split ones as they go too mushy for this. You can use fewer lentils if you wish and bulk up the veg, but I make this as a main meal and wanted the protein, etc.

You can lose the olive oil and save 120 cals per recipe if you wish, but I like it myself!

You can vary this by adding whatever veg you have in - courgette would have been good but I didn't have any in.

I used coriander but only because there was a pot growing on the windowsill. Basil also would have been nice, or even a pinch of dried mixed herbs - but add dried herbs sparingly and add them at the same time of the lentils to give them time to develop.

If you don't have fresh tomatoes, an extra can would do fine, but maybe don't add all the juice of the second can.

It would also be nice topped with a small amount of cheese, before going in the oven but I didn't have any in, so couldn't use it.

We used to make felt frogs at school and stuff them with lentils as little beanie toys. Get two squares of felt of different (or the same) colour. Cut out a flat frog shape from both and sew together leaving a little hole. Fill with lentils and sew up. Just make sure you sew well so the seams don't split!

Very easy and cute presents. Obviously not edible though!

COOLTRIKERCHICK wrote:

if you got any lentils left at christmas time....

you could allways use them for christmas pressies...

put them in a nice jar.. with lovely gingham over the lid etc... and then do a label...natural bubble bath kit...:D


( sorry will now crawl back in the corner ) i have a strange sense of humour:D

You think YOU have a strange sense of humour? I read this and thought you meant a picture of Gingham Ribbon on the top! :rotfl: