Curried Lentils

Several weeks ago, Mark & I spent a decadent weekend at Cannon Beach, compliments of my sister as a thank you for taking care of Tippy, her dog. We had one dinner at EVOO, the cooking school in the middle of downtown Cannon Beach. It was a lot of fun and the dinner was excellent. The chef even gave us his recipes to take home. Oh Boy! However, when I tried to make the curried lentils he served with a nice piece of halibut, crusted with hazelnuts, I realized that there were several main ingredients missing. So, with a little help from the Internet, I came up with the following.


Inspiration: A fabulous weekend at the coast
Time: 15 minutes prep and 45 to cook
Difficulty: Easy
Special equipment: Green lentils (ok, so lentils aren't equipment, but you need these because they don't turn to mush when you cook them)
Servings: 4

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 leek, cleaned and diced
1 parsnip, peeled and diced
1 carrot, peeled and diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 cup Umbrian or green lentils, picked clean and rinsed
3 cups stock (any kind)

Saute the vegetables in a heavy pot with the olive oil until aromatic and golden. Add the garlic and saute for 5 minutes more. Add the curry powder and saute until fragrant. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the lentils are cooked, about 1/2 hour.

Since we had just had halibut several nights earlier, I marinated raw shrimp in oil, mashed garlic and salt for 30 minutes, grilled them and placed them over the lentils, finishing off with chopped cilantro.

Cream of Tomato Soup

I'm embarrassed. No posts in a month. Ridiculous. Especially given that I have been razzing my sister for not posting. I'll try to do better I promise.

So our garden has runnith over with tomatoes. Not particularly surprising given that we raised 70 starts and planted 23 of them. And no amount of tomato sandwiches, caprese salads, or dried tomatoes can make a dent. So on a chilly fall night, I tried (and failed) to make a dent by making a cream of tomato soup, complete with grilled cheese sammiches. Perfect accompany to GLEE night.

Inspiration: Too many tomatoes
Time: 75 minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Special equipment: Immersion Blender
Servings: 8

Ingredients:
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery ribs, diced
2 tbs olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2-3 sprigs fresh thyme and oregano leaves, chopped
1/2 cup red wine
12-15 large heirloom tomatoes, peels removed and quatered (DO NOT REMOVE SEEDS OR DRAIN) (if tomatoes are not in season, use 3-4 cans of unseasoned diced tomatoes)
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup half and half (option substitute: Whole milk...or cream if you are decadent)
10 leaves of basil, sliced thin as possible

1. Saute onion, carrots and celery in oil until onions are translucent. Add garlic, herbs, salt and pepper to taste and saute until carrots are tender. Delgaze pan with wine.

2. Add Tomatoes and chicken broth. Bring just to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes.

3. Using immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth. Add in half and half and return to boil. If you do not have an immersion blender, get one...Just kidding. You can use a standar blender or food processor...just remember boiling liquid is VERY HOT. So please be careful. And remember, I warned you to get an immersion blender.

4. Ladle into bowls to serve, and top with basil.

Note: Goes great with grilled cheese sammiches. Can top with a bit of reduced balsamic vinegar to cut the sweetness of the tomatoes, or a small dollop of creme fraiche