Pan-Seared Salmon w/ Mixed Greens Pesto & Lentil Black Rice Salad

Today is the first Friday of the Lenten season, and in honor of that, Leslie and I are sharing fish and seafood recipes for today's edition of She Made, Ella Hace. So, here's the thing—I wasn't raised Catholic (and I'm not Catholic now), so I've never done the whole abstaining from meat on Fridays during Lent thing. And while my husband was raised Catholic, he's not a practicing Catholic now.

Indian-Spiced Red Lentil and Veggie Soup

If you like going behind the scenes and joining in the kitchen nitty-gritty, you'll want to check out the new online "cook along" called Cook the Book with Denise and Jenni. If you've been hanging around here for any number of years, you may think this sounds familiar. That's because the name is similar to the club I've been participating in (and hosted for a couple of years) since 2009 called Cook the Books (there's an "s" on the end of that one). But they are different.

Cook the Books is a bi-monthly book club in which we read a "foodie book" and then head into our kitchens to cook something inspired by it, then the food is all rounded up on the website for everybody to enjoy together. Cook the Book is a monthly meet-up in which the recipe (or maybe more than one recipe) is featured and cooked together while streaming online. So, similar names, but each unique unto itself.

Slow Cooker Lentil Soup with Sausage and Tomatoes inspired by The Jesus Cow

On Christmas Eve itself, the bachelor Harley Jackson stepped into his barn and beheld there illuminated in the straw a smallish newborn bull calf upon whose flank was borne the very image of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

"Well," said Harley, "that's trouble."

You've heard of people seeing the image of Jesus in a tortilla or a screen door, right? And you've heard the hub-bub that ensued, right? Well, so had Harley Jackson. So, when he saw the the image on the hide of his calf, the only things that ran through his mind were how he could hide him or get rid of him. This confirmed bachelor slash sort-of farmer didn't need to deal with throngs of religious pilgrims trampling his land in the small town of Swivel, Wisconsin.

Fast forward a couple weeks and a new love interest threatening that confirmed bachelor status. Harley wakes up to a commotion, the calf wandering around alone outside of the barn, and a swift realization that his life is never going to be quite the same again.

Duck and Lentil Ragù with Spaghetti Squash

The word ragù instantly conjures up visions of warm kitchens, family meals, and comfort food. Slow cooking...long braises...tomato based (traditionally) meat sauces, usually containing some sort of wine...what's not comforting about that? But sometimes I cheat and go for something equally as hearty and flavorful, yet cooked in far less time. Let's call them rapid ragùs.

This one in particular still features tender, slow-cooked meat—it's just that I didn't simmer it in the sauce itself. I love slow roasted duck and duck confit (duck legs that have been cooked slowly in their own fat), and while I don't mind taking the time to cook either, Maple Leaf Farms offers some awesome pre-cooked options. That means that I can have slow roasted meat at my fingertips, whenever.

I made this ragù at the end of last week (you may remember me telling you that there was a thick blanket of snow outside my window). It all started with a couple of little ovalular spaghetti squash sitting on my counter. Spaghetti squash just so happen to be my favorite type of winter squash...well, any squash really. More often than not, I'll just roast and scrape one and eat it with some Italian sausage and kale; that's one of my favorite meals. But since I've shared that recipe before, I knew I had to come up with something else. I mean, that is the point of 12 Weeks of Winter Squash. Stepping outside and trying new things, new combinations...coming up with new favorite uses for these sturdy squash varieties.

Lentil and Fingerling Potato Salad w/ Warm Bacon Dressing

This post is sponsored by the Idaho Potato Commission. All opinions are my own.

This week the Sunday Supper Movement is partnering with the Idaho Potato Commission to bring you a menu full of Potato Salad Possibilities. We have so many mouthwatering variations, that I know you'll find some to add to your own menus throughout the next couple of seasons!

Now, let's talk potato salad. There are as many kinds under the sun as there are people. Some are coated in a creamy mayonnaise base. Others are infused with tangy vinegar. And then there are the ones that fall somewhere in between. Guess what? As long as they're made well, I love them all.

Growing up, German Potato Salad was my absolute favorite. My grandma made it all summer long, so those tender potato slices laced with onion, bacon, and zingy vinegar are ingrained in my soul. And back then, I didn't like mayo, therefore I didn't like mayo-based salads - so hers was the end-all.

Herbed Spaetzle and Lentil Soup

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of the ADA in conjunction with Kitchen PLAY.  All opinions are 100% my own.

Though it's been resistant, Autumn is starting to ease on in and claim its rightful place here in Northwestern Indiana.  Our days have been (my idea of) perfection - in the 60's, clear, sunny, and made for livin'!  I'm always the last one to hold out for pleasant nights that allow me to sleep next to an open window, but even that time has passed.  The leaves on the trees are starting to change colors, and even drop here and there.  And after a long day of outdoor romping and cheering yourself hoarse at a football game, a warm, hearty bowl of soup hits the spot like nothing else can!

So, after paging through the third and final book from the American Diabetes Association library that I will be sharing with you this month, it was no surprise that from all of the tempting dishes - I chose soup!  Hopefully you'll remember these two previous posts, in which I shared heart-healthy, diabetes-friendly recipes featured in cookbooks from the ADA's library as part of the 30 Days of Family Health initiative.  This week, I'd like to introduce you to The American Diabetes Association Vegetarian Cookbook: Satisfying, Bold, and Flavorful Recipes from the Garden by Chef Steven Petusevsky.

Lentils w/ Rice inspired by Delicatessen {food 'n flix}

I knew what Delicatessen was about before I started watching, so it wasn't a shock.  This film is set in a small apartment building atop a butcher shop in post-apocalyptic France, in which the owner of the apartment building and the butcher are one in the same. In this shattered version of the world, meat is incredibly scarce.  Not even any rats remain.  This means that although the butcher shop is open daily, meat is only sold from time to time.  Usually following the disappearance of the latest handyman.

But people look forward to these disappearances.  They anticipate them.  They prepare their goods for trade.  Goods like grain, corn, lentils, and whatever else the butcher may accept as payment.  It's dark, and a bit crazy.  But it also has its funny moments and a quirky cast of characters.

The characters make this film.  The humanness of the daily antics, from boys pulling pranks to forbidden love, from jealousy to mother-in-laws, from trysts to bumbling first dates.  The hilariousness of filling a room with water in order to break through the floor and escape your pursuers.  And perhaps my favorite part, bouncing in time on a bed in order to find that one squeaky spring.

Food references abound, as you would imagine since it is the primary thing on your mind when you are always hungry.  But it does take a little bit of imagination to pull the bits and bobs together that are NOT mystery meat.  Okay, not a mystery - everybody knows what it is, and they ask for it by name (brain, shoulder, leg).

At first, I was going to make an Artichoke Heart Souffle in honor of the code words that Julie uses in her attempt to save Louison from her father's cleaver, with the help of the underground group, the Troglodytes.  And then I entertained the idea of a "mock apple pie", as a nod to the "mock animal meat" that drives these people mad with anticipation.  The large sacks of corn in Clapet's basement brought visions of stone soup, or perhaps cornmeal mush to my head.

But in the end, it was Louison, the lovable vegetarian clown turned handyman who inspired me.  When his taxi first arrives on the cobblestones outside of the butcher shop to find a job, he turns out his pockets looking for money, and all he comes up with is a palmful of lentils.  Vegetarianism appeals to me much more than cannibalism.  Yes, lentils and other legumes would be where I turned to give my body protein.  And since there is still grain floating around, why not combine it with those lentils - to fill you up for a longer period of time.  I like to think I'd pull out my stash of spices in order to add a bit of depth and a reminder of the "good old days".

Lentils with Rice

by Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Keywords: boil vegetarian nut-free soy-free sugar-free lentils rice

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1 1/3 cups French green lentils, rinsed
• 5 cups water, divided
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 large red onion, chopped
• 2 fat cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon roasted, ground coriander
• sea salt
• 1 cup white basmati rice (or long grain white), rinsed well
• 2 tablespoons butter
• big handful chopped parsley, divided

Instructions

Put the lentils and 4 cups of the water into a large pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until just tender, adding a few pinches of salt towards the end of the cooking time.

In the meantime, heat the oil in a small-medium pan over medium-low heat and add the onion, stirring often, until it is golden and "sticky-looking". Add garlic, cinnamon, paprika, and coriander, and stir, cooking for a couple minutes longer. Remove from heat.

Add the reserved onion mixture. rice, butter, half of the parsley, the last cup of water, and another pinch or two of salt to the pot with the lentils. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce to a very gentle simmer.

Cook for about 15 minutes, or until rice is cooked through. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork. Cover with a clean dish towel and cover again for 10 minutes. Fluff again, check seasoning, and and stir in remaining parsley.  Enjoy.

inspired by and adapted from Apples for Jam

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This month's edition of Food 'n Flix is hosted by Elizabeth at The Law Student's Cookbook, with her pick: Delicatessen. Submissions are due 5/29, so there's still time to join in this month. If you haven't seen Delicatessen, you're in for a surprise!

Next month's pick, Jiro Dreams of Sushi, will be hosted by Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla - it's never too early to start watching (and cooking... or making sushi).

Spaghetti with Lentil Ragù (& banishing the demons)

Lately, I've felt the demons rising up, twisting and pulling at my insides.  Jealousy, insecurity, desire, and other hybrids sprung from a mixture of all three.  I've let myself get sucked into the chasm.  I'm sure it's a personality trait, but I think it's also a quirk of human nature.

I've always strived to be easy going, relaxed, and just plain old kind.  Usually I can accomplish that.  But sometimes I get caught up in what I don't have, what I can't do.  I see photos and hear stories from friends going to blogging conferences and traveling far and wide to learn to take better photos, tell better stories, be successful in business endeavors... and it starts to wear on me.  I want to feel happy for them.  And I basically do.  But then I start to feel sorry for myself.  For the fact that I am not able to do those same things.  I know it's not anybody's fault but my own that I don't have the means to take part in these events.  But that's not enough to stop the tightness in my chest.  It's not enough to stop the burning that starts at the back of my eyes and eventually escapes in the form of salty tears.

I see book after book written by bloggers I know, or at least bloggers I know of - and I think "that should be me!".   Voices inside rage "but it's not fair!".  "Life ain't fair, honey.  You tell your kids that all the time, you should listen to yourself."  I make myself take a step back.  Because the weight of these feelings crushes my insides, crushes my soul.  It's hard to breath.  It's hard to think.  It's hard to be creative when I indulge these demons.

Sopa de Lentejas con Chorizo (Lentil Soup w/ Chorizo)

You know how sometimes...after you've seen something delectable...you just can't get it out of head until you've tried it?  Well, this just so happens to be one of those times.  Sweet Mely from Mexico in My Kitchen shared a pot of soup the other day that just planted itself in the path of anything else that tried to make its way into my cerebral cortex.  So.  For the safety of me and those around me, I figured I'd better move it out of the forefront so that I could attend to other things.  I did things a little differently, due to what was on hand and personal cooking habits, but stayed pretty true to the way Mely made it.  Head on over to her place for the original recipe and step by step instructions.  The main difference is that I used some split red lentils in place of regular lentils.  If you do this, please note that this type only takes about ten minutes at most to cook.  Be sure to cook all of your veggies until almost soft before adding the lentils and use a fortified stock for maximum flavor development.  I wrote the recipe as though I'd used normal lentils, though...because normally...I'll do just that.  The batch of chorizo I used was pretty spicy this time, but if it hadn't been, I knew I'd be stirring in some crushed red chiles.  Also, I love finishing a hearty legume soup with a drizzle of good vinegar.

Sopa de Lentejas con Chorizo

(Lentil Soup with Chorizo)
adapted from Mexico in my Kitchen

makes 6-8 svgs.

6 oz.chorizo (fresh, Mexican)

3 tomatoes
3 garlic cloves, peeled

1 large onion, chopped

3 medium carrots, small dice

2 c. lentils, rinsed

7¼ cups of chicken broth, divided (plus more as needed, or use water)

small handful fresh thyme sprigs

1 bay leaf

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper
crushed red chiles (optional)
Balsamic vinegar (optional)

Place the tomatoes and garlic in a blender with a cup of the broth. Mix until smooth and set aside.

In a large pot, cook the chorizo over medium heat until well browned, ~8 minutes. Remove some of the excess fat from the pot leaving just one tablespoon.

Add the carrots and onion; cook for about 5 minutes until soft.

 Stir in reserved tomato-garlic mixture and cook for ~5 more minutes.

Add the lentils and remaining broth. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer. Add the thyme and bay leaf. Partially cover and simmer gently for ~30-40 minutes, or until lentils are tender. Stir in a bit more broth or water if soup seems too dry.

Remove thyme sprigs and bay leaf and season to taste w/ salt & pepper.  If you like it with a little heat, add some dried, red chile flakes to taste, as well.  Some chorizos are hotter than others, so be sure to taste before adding more heat.  Drizzle a bit of Balsamic vinegar over each serving, if desired.

*note: If using split red lentils, they take a max of 10 minutes to cook, so adjust accordingly!!

*Did you know that today is National Soup Swap Day?  Interesting fact for all of the other SoupAddicts out there... I'm sending this over to my pal Deb at Kahakai Kitchen for her weekly virtual soup swap, Souper Sundays!

Lentils and Potatoes with Curry

I was flipping through some cookbooks this afternoon...as I'm wont to do...searching for something I could make with ingredients that I already had in house.  Do you do that?  I go with something I have, say chickpeas or green beans or tofu...and then hit the indices of a big stack of books.  Comparing items I have...or could adapt...or draw inspiration from.  Sometimes completely striking out...other times hitting pay dirt.  I was searching lentils this particular day (yesterday)...looking for something to eat for dinner that would have enough leftovers for me to pack into my lunchbox for our trip up to meet my mom tomorrow (today by now).  I found a dish that caught my fancy...for which I also had all the components in the pantry or fridge...and this comforting, belly-filling, heat-creeping dish was on the stove in minutes flat.  Don't ask me how many minutes...just minutes.  Minutes flat.  I guess it sounds strange to leave out the actual number if you're using that phrase.  So, we'll say... I had it on the stove in 4 minutes flat! 

Lentils and Potatoes with Curry

from HTCEV by Mark Bittman

1 c. dried brown lentils, washed and picked over

3½  c. homemade coconut milk (or water or veg stock)

1 Tbs. homemade curry powder

2 medium Russet potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks

salt and freshly ground black pepper

yogurt and cilantro leaves for garnish

Combine the lentils, liquid, and curry powder in a medium saucepan and bring to boil over med-high heat. Turn heat down to med-low, so it bubbles gently, then partially cover and cook ~15 mins., until lentils start to absorb liquid a bit.

Add potatoes and cover pan completely.  Cook, undisturbed, for 10 mins. or so, then stir gently.  If lentils seem too dry, add a bit more liquid. Add some salt as the lentils become tender.

Cover and continue to cook until lentils are soft and beginning to turn to mush and potatoes are tender at center, 5-10 mins.  Add liquid if necessary...should be moist, but not soupy.  Add lots of black pepper, then stir, taste, and adjust seasonings as necessary.  Serve garnished w/ yogurt & cilantro.

 ...and yes, there was enough left over to pack into my lunch box for the roadtrip today that I'm currently on and I'm betting it's tasting even better after sitting a night.  Flavors having time to get to know each other and co-habitate and all.  The theme this week at IHCC is LunchBox...like the way I worked that in? Ha!  It's the honest to goodness truth, though...I'm probably stuffing my face as you read this...

This post is linked to....

*Check out past & future MLLA hosts over at The Well-Seasoned Cook!