Receta A Lentil and Roast Vegetable Salad Inspired by WholeFoods
For those of you who live in the Lexington area, if you haven't yet stopped by WholeFoods for their Flights After 5 on Friday, what's stopping you?
For $5 you get your own glass and the chance to sample 5 beers, along with a few little snacks. Each week has a different beer theme. I can think of few better ways to wind down the work week. (Save your glass and take it back for a $1 discount on future Flights After 5 events.)
Last Friday, I was invited with some of the other Kentucky Food Bloggers. The theme was local breweries and, since central Kentucky's brewing scene has truly burst to life in the last year or so, this was an excellent opportunity to sample a few of the offerings.
The event runs from 5.30 to 7 and I only sampled 4 of the 5 but several were very welcome surprises. First up was the Kentucky Light, which I've had before - a nice, crisp Kentucky lager.
West Sixth Brewing Company opened its doors earlier this year and immediately made quite an impact on the local community. I am not usually an IPA fan but their West Sixth IPA was definitely something I would drink again. It was much smoother and more palatable than IPA's I've had in the past.
Next up was the Lore Orange Blossom Wheat. Lore is another relatively new arrival to the Bluegrass, having set up shop in Danville last year. The Orange Blossom Wheat was light, citrusy, and the perfect match for an accompanying snack of goat cheese drizzled in honey.
Finally, I tried the BBC Bourbon Barrel Stout. I grew up thinking of stout as an old lady's drink. A lot of elderly women in England used to drink one for breakfast as a means of getting their dose of iron. That and my one experience of Guinness (which I did not enjoy) have always put me off trying any more stout varieties, but at the risk of sounding like a broken record, this was delicious - creamy, not overly thick, a rich flavor and the deliciousness of bourbon. I don't think I've ever tried anything made in a bourbon barrel that I did not like!
Many thanks to Kelly-Anne and the staff of WholeFoods for a wonderful evening.And if you tend to think that WholeFoods is on the pricy side, I noticed that their organic milk is much cheaper than the organic that I buy at a certain other large grocery in town. I may have to start driving over to Lexington Green more often.
Now on to the cooking...I came home from WholeFoods with a wonderful bag of goodies and decided to put some of them to use last night for dinner in a Roasted Vegetable and Lentil Salad.
Oven roasted tomatoes and onions are combined with spinach, lentils and cheese, and then topped with a cilantro dressing.
- Roasted Vegetable and Lentil Salad
- 1 1/2 cups
- lentils
- 4
- Roma tomatoes
- 2
- red onions
- drizzle
- olive oil
- 6 oz
- spinach
- 6 oz
- feta cheese
- handful
- cilantro
- 1 tsp
- honey mustard
- 5 tbs
- olive oil
- juice
- lemon
Preheat the oven to 400F. Lightly film a baking sheet with olive oil.
Cook the lentils: Place them in a large saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 20-40 minutes or until the lentils are tender.
Cut the tomatoes in half. Place the cut onions and tomatoes on the baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, making sure to coat each onion and tomato. Place in oven and roast for 30 minutes, turning the onions over after 15 minutes.
Drain the lentils. Place in a bowl, drizzle with some olive oil and toss in the spinach. Sprinkle the salad with the cheese.
For the vinaigrette: Place the cilantro in a food processor. Add the mustard, olive oil, and lemon juice and puree. Taste and adjust seasoning.
To serve: Place the roasted tomatoes and onions in the bowl. Pour over the vinaigrette and toss gently to coat.
This is great either as a side dish (I served it as an accompaniment to steak) or on its own.