The New Green Lentils:

Cost:

I have no idea, I threw out the receipt and I went grocery shopping for the whole week, but here are the ingredients and what I think would be the cost: 2 Cups French Lentils: $2.00

  1 Yellow Onion: $1.00
  2 Carrots: $.25
  3 Celery stalks: $.50
  5 garlic buttons: $.50
  Butter: $.75
  Flour: $.75
  Cucumber: $.25
  1 lemon: $.50
  1/2 bunch of parsley: $.50
  Misc Spices from my pantry/fridge that I'm very much estimating the cost of:
  Corriander, Yogurt,  Garam Masala, Cumin, Paprika, Olive Oil, Salt, Sriracha = $3.00

  TOTAL COST: $10.00 -So more likely, $10-12 bucks

This is honestly a very, very delicious recipe and it will feed a family all week.

Makes about 12-15 servings.

Recipe

In a large sauce pan, add a few table spoons of olive oil on high. Add in your chopped onion, celery and carrots. Let them cook for about 5-10 minutes or until the onions become somewhat translucent. During this time, take half of your lemon and squeeze the juice in to the pan.

Then you want to add in the garlic and let it cook for another couple of minutes. Then you want to add in your spices.

Many recipes say to add your spices after you add the water, but I like to add it now and let the onions, carrots, celery and garlic absorb them. I think it helps to carry the flavor. So, add two tablespoons of coriander, 1 table spoon of garam masala, 1 table spoon of cumin and 1/2 tablespoon of paprika. Salt to taste. (truth is, I do all of this to taste and don't use measuring utensils. Use the force)

Then you add in 6 cups of water and 2 cups of lentils. Add in your chopped parsley and stir. Bring the water to a bubble and then lower your heat and let the lentils simmer for about an hour.

Continue to stir the lentils throughout this hour or they'll definitely stick to the bottom of the pan. No bueno.

In a small sauce pan, take a stick of butter and melt it on medium heat. Add in some of that beer that you're drinking and the rest of that lemon juice. Now, slowly add some flower until you start to thicken it and before you know it, you'll have a nice thick roux. If you'd like to add some heat to your lentils, now is a good time to add some sriracha via the roux:

Now take the roux in table spoons and add it to the lentils, stirring it in vigorously. Eventually, this will give the lentils a creaminess.

Let them cook for another 1/2 hour on low heat or until the lentils are no longer firm and are to your liking.

Now in a small bowl, add some plain yogurt and stir in some sriracha and a little bit of that lemon that is still kicking in those rinds you have laying on the counter -go on, squeeze... there's more in there. Also, thinly slice some cucumber.

Here it is paired with Hitachino Nest, White Ale a favorite of mine. The cucumbers and the beer both work nicely to help cool down the mouth as I add a good amount of sriracha/spice to the dish.

ENJOY