Tag

lentils

Amazing Sandwiches Roundup

written by Ali

It’s hard to believe it’s already May, but on the other hand, it’s the perfect weather for this Amazing Sandwiches Roundup! Two things have been going on in my life recently: one, we moved and two, the sun has started to peek out of the clouds. Ok – so the first thing is the more monumental of the two, as it also means I’ve started a new job. All of this means that I’ve been a little scattered lately and haven’t had much time for cooking, since, well, I don’t know where half the kitchen utensils have wandered off to, anyway. The last time we moved it was three months before I found the box that had my whisk in it. I’d like to say I’m a little more organized this time, but I’m really not. Therefore, we are going to start out May with featuring an amazing sandwiches roundup and sharing fifteen of the best sandwich recipes from some amazing, awesome food bloggers.

Plus – it’s picnic season! All of these sandwich recipes are perfect for making ahead of time and packing into your picnic basket. Can we just say that I’ll be doing a lot of picnicking on the Oregon Coast this summer? I feel perfectly well prepared, too, because of all of these great recipes.

First up is a Japanese Egg Salad Sandwich with Bacon and Coleslaw from The Missing Lokness.

Next up is a BLTA Sandwich with Herb Garlic Dressing from In Mama Maggie’s Kitchen. She had me at avocado and bacon. But then herb garlic dressing pushed me over the edge.

This tuna and lentil salad sandwich from Peppers and Pennies epitomizes picnic sandwich to me. I can only imagine how tasty and filling it is.

I love sundried tomatoes and basil. I also love how they are combined in this chicken salad to make a great filling for a sandwich from Pinch Me I’m Eating.

This French Tuna Sandwich from Curious Cuisenere is an homage to the Nicoise salad. I’m pretty sure this is the first sandwich on this list I’m going to make – because wouldn’t this just be perfect for a day at the beach?

Somehow or another, I’ve never had pimento cheese. It’s a bit sad, really, because for the first few months I lived in Vancouver, WA, there was a food truck that served only dishes with pimento cheese in the neighborhood. I regretted not trying it, but now I think I might just make my own so that I can enjoy this Bacon Pimento Cheese Guacamole Guacamento from Two Lucky Spoons. And yes, this is my third recipe in the roundup with bacon, because bacon on sandwiches is just that good.

This Greek Stuffed Crouton Vegetarian Sandwich from Bowl Me Over is a great vegetarian option for your picnic lunch.

Garlic and Zest shared this really tasty looking Don’t Cry For Me Argentina Roast Beef Sandwich. Am I the only one for whom the song is now playing on a loop in my head? I love the song, so I don’t mind. I just wish I had one of these sandwiches right now to go with it.

Little Figgy shared this beautiful picnic sandwich with triple meat and brie. I think this sandwich is so pretty.

I’m a huge fan of onigiri and onigirazu. I can’t wait to try out this Wasabi Mayo Crab Onigirazo from HWC Magazine. I think this would be incredible with fresh Oregon Dungeness crab.

This next option is a really lovely vegetarian sandwich with roasted eggplant, herbed goat cheese, and sunflower seeds from Luci’s Morsels.

Next up is another sandwich with bacon and avocado from Bourbon and Honey. It’s possible that this is one of my most favorite food combinations, especially when tomatoes are in season. I especially love the idea of a spicy aioli to go with it.

Midlife Croissant shared this plantain and pancetta panini with pesto. I don’t often cook with plantain, though I see them from time to time at the grocery store. I think I’m inspired by this recipe to check it out.

I love lentils, but don’t think I’ve ever made a sandwich that included them. Rhubarbarians has the great idea of using green lentils with walnut herb ricotta. This seems like a perfect vegetarian sandwich to me.

Finally, Food Well Said shared this gorgeous and tasty looking spring sandwich.

This has been such a fun roundup to put together. The only problem is that I am now incredibly hungry – it’s not a good idea to write a food blog post before lunch. I’m off to have a sandwich. I would love to see your picnic spread – if you make any of these or have a favorite sandwich to share, post in the comments, post to my Facebook feed, or send me a tweet @Alittlelunch1.

May 1, 2017 3 comments

Lunch Recipes Main Dishes Quick and Easy Vegetarian

Black Lentil Bowl with a Poached Egg

written by Ali

I’m at that stage of winter when a black lentil bowl with a poached egg sounds like a perfectly light lunch for the week. I’m also at the point at which I’m itching to do some spring cleaning, including making an effort to use up what’s been lurking at the back of the pantry. It helps motivate me that we might be moving and I really don’t want to drag a half-eaten bag of black lentils with me. As it is, I still have jars of home canned jam and pickles that we moved last year that will need to be packaged and moved again (because I’m not letting those pickles go to waste).

Black lentils just lend themselves to a simple meal. The black lentil bowl with a poached egg takes just seven ingredients (counting salt and olive oil). This recipe took so little time to make – I prepped my mirepoix first, cooked that and the lentils and then poached the eggs. I’ve been obsessing a bit about mirepoix here of late. The combination of onion, celery, and carrot adds such a deep flavor to dishes and it’s so, so simple. With this dish, I understood the full complexity of the flavor – initially, I thought that the black lentil bowl with a poached egg would need a dressing of some sort, but when I tasted the lentils, that idea went out the window.

A note on the poached eggs: back in December, I tried my hand at poaching an egg in the traditional way in a saucepan. It came out a flimsy mess. Recently, I ran across a video of a chef poaching eggs in the oven, so that’s what I did. The eggs came out beautifully! The best part was I didn’t have to swirl the water, baby the eggs, watch the temperature, etc. Eggs went into muffin cups with a tablespoon of water each, hung out in the oven for 9 minutes, and came out perfectly poached.

The full technique is included in the recipe below. The best part is that poached eggs can be prepped in advance, so I poached my eggs on Sunday and will have an egg a day each day at lunch with my lentils. I love super easy lunch prep!

Yum

Black Lentil Bowl with a Poached Egg

Ingredients

1 onion
2 celery stalks
2 carrots, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup black beluga lentils
2 cups water
4 eggs

Instructions

Chop the onion, celery, and carrots finely. Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan and saute the onion, celery, and carrot mix until the vegetables start to soften (about 10 minutes). Add the salt and the dried lentils. Stir a few times and then add the water. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and simmer for 20 - 25 minutes or until all the water is absorbed and the lentils are soft.
To oven poach the eggs: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In each muffin cup, add one tablespoon water. Break each egg directly into the muffin cup. Sprinkle with pepper and salt. Bake for 9 minutes or until the white is set and the yolk is still runny. Use a slotted spoon to remove each poached egg and drain on a paper towel. Eggs can be prepared up to five days in advance.
Recipe makes 4 servings. Enjoy!

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This post is linked to My Legume Love Affair #103, hosted by The Big Sweet Tooth (conceptualized by Susan and hosted by Lisa at Lisa’s Kitchen). I’ll be hosting in April – can’t wait!

It’s also linked up to #CookBlogShare, which is hosted this week by Sneaky Veg. Check out all the great posts!

And you can find it linked up on Tinned Tomatoes Meat Free Monday.

This recipe is getting around!

January 23, 2017 6 comments

Farmer's Market Lunch Recipes Quick and Easy Salad Vegetarian

Lentil and Delicata Squash Bowl

written by Ali

This is the weekend before the Thanksgiving food storm here in the US. You might be (like I am) getting ready to grocery shop and start the pre-cooking process to get ready for the upcoming Thursday feast. You might be preparing to test out a cream gravy with sausage recipe and getting ready to buy up dozens of eggs to make pumpkin pies, Black Friday brunch, and fruitcake. You might be contemplating making marshmallows and gingerbread as a prelude to the next big holiday, because let’s face it: Thanksgiving is the gateway holiday to all manners of foodie sin. Seriously – how great is that?

But just in case you need a little break between the turkey and the Christmas ham, you might re-purpose some of the seasonal veggies you have lying around and make this Lentil and Delicata Squash Bowl. Beluga lentils are cute, tiny lentils that cook quickly and have a nutritional punch. Delicata squash is just wonderful – largely because you don’t have to peel it and can roast it up in no time at all.

I’m linking this recipe up to My Legume Love Affair #101, courtesy of Briciole and Lisa’s Kitchen and encourage you to take a look at the other legume recipes that are being added. Susan, of The Well Seasoned Cook started My Legume Love Affair and I encourage you to check out her page.

Lentil and Delicata Squash Bowl

Serves 4

1 cup beluga lentils
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 Delicata squash
2 parsnips
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup almonds
2 avocados
4 hard boiled eggs

Tahini Dressing
1/2 cup tahini
1/2 cup water
Juice from 1/2 a lemon
Pinch of salt
A few grinds of fresh pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add the lentils and salt, cover, and turn the heat down to a simmer. Simmer for 20-25 minutes or until lentils are soft and water is absorbed. Set aside.

While the lentils are cooking, prepare the squash and parsnips. Cut the squash into 1/2 inch slices and de-seed each slice. Cut the parsnips into cubes. Put the squash and parsnip cubes in a single layer on a parchment lined baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Roast for 50-60 minutes, flipping the squash and parsnip cubes once so both sides get golden brown.

Make the tahini dressing by combining the tahini, water, lemon, salt and pepper in a small bowl or jar. Whisk until thoroughly combined.

To assemble the bowls, split the lentils between four bowls. Divide the squash, parsnips, avocado, almonds, and hard-boiled eggs between each. Spoon the tahini dressing over the top and enjoy!

November 19, 2016 2 comments

Farmer's Market Lunch Recipes Quick and Easy Vegetarian

Fall Lentil Bowl

written by Ali

I spent the last two weeks traveling across the country to two very good workforce development conferences. I ate some great food, but to be honest, I was so ready to be eating at home again. This week, in addition to feeling like I’m going to have to crawl out from a mountain of paperwork and emails, I’m also eager to eat healthy, satisfying, and low-salt lunches at my desk, which is what inspired me to create this recipe for fall lentil bowls.

I also have been feeling like it’s time to clean out the pantry. I have a habit of buying interesting ingredients, whether it be lentils or pasta or winter squash, and thinking that I’ll eventually get around to cooking with them. In this case, I purchased some beluga lentils from Trader Joe’s months ago and decided today that I was really in the mood for a lentil dish. Beluga lentils are tiny black lentils that keep their shape and don’t get mushy. They are perfect for a base for adding various toppings. And since it’s fall, I thought it might be time to start eating the winter squash that are hanging out in storage in our garage.

I used Delicata squash, parsnips, almonds, hard-boiled eggs, and avocado for this recipe, but you could certainly add other ingredients – other squash, other nuts, maybe even spinach or other greens. If you wanted to create a vegan dish, leave the eggs out. I would imagine that this would also be good with a fried egg or poached egg, but I didn’t think either would hold up well for a night in the fridge before I go to work.

Fall Lentil Bowl
Serves 4

1 cup beluga lentils
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 Delicata squash
2 parsnips
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup almonds
2 avocados
4 hard boiled eggs

Tahini Dressing
1/2 cup tahini
1/2 cup water
Juice from 1/2 a lemon
Pinch of salt
A few grinds of fresh pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Make the tahini dressing by combining the tahini, water, lemon, salt and pepper in a small bowl or jar. Whisk until thoroughly combined.

To assemble the bowls, split the lentils between four bowls. Divide the squash, parsnips, avocado, almonds, and hard-boiled eggs between each. Spoon the tahini dressing over the top and enjoy!

(I assemble part of the bowls in advance – the lentils, the squash, the parsnips, the almonds and the dressing, and then add the avocado and egg the night before I plan to eat the bowl for lunch).

October 17, 2016 0 comment