No, you haven’t lost your mind. Our family is down to one computer, and I was hoping to have mine fixed by now. Unfortunately, laptops are not too fond of mac & beef, so repair has been agonizingly slow. And when I only have a few minutes in an uncomfy chair right before bedtime, expounding upon the subject at hand is easily delayed/dismissed. I’m backdating the entries for the days they *should* have been published. Thanks for joining my time-travel team!

Lentils, oh how I love them. Small, simple, yet a nutritional powerhouse.

And inexpensive.

And tasty.

When I’m recovering from (whatever), lentils are the first thing I look for as comfort food. And after trying this recipe, I can understand why Esau sold his birthright for them.

Like the Southern New Year’s dinner, the lentils are supposed to remind you of coins. The sausages are for “plenty”.

2 C dried brown lentils (picked over, of course)
2 bay leaves
1/4 C extra-virgin olive oil
2 large cloves garlic, smashed
2 celery stalks with leaves, diced
1 large carrot, peeled and diced
1 large onion, diced
3 tablespoons tomato paste

6 Italian-style sweet pork sausages

Put the lentils in a pot with the bay leaves and cold water to cover. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes. Skim off any foam that forms at the top. Turn off the heat, then drain the lentils and set them aside, reserving their liquid.

In a large skillet warm the olive oil. Add the garlic and sauté over low heat until it is nicely colored but not brown. Add the celery, carrot, and onion and sauté over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until softened.

Stir in the drained lentils. Dilute the tomato paste in a few tablespoons of some of the lentil cooking liquid and stir it into the onion/carrot/celery.

Add enough of the lentil cooking liquid to cover by about an inch. Simmer until the lentils are tender but not mushy, adding more of the lentil cooking liquid as necessary to keep the lentils moist.

When the lentils are cooked, take out the bay leaves and turn off the heat. Add salt and pepper to taste¹. Cover and let stand while you cook the sausages.

Looks good, doesn’t it?

Ordinarily this would be the part where a bowl full of steaming deliciousness gets placed. Unfortunately, I was too busy eating it to take a picture. The next time I make it (next week, probably), I’ll post one. Until next time!

1. I didn’t add salt. The salt in the sausages was enough for me. But also? I’m salt-sensitive. YMMV [↩]