I discovered my daughter had low iron levels at her last well child visit. I found this totally shocking. Apparently, hemoglobin levels are NOT correlated to willpower. The pediatrician advised me to increase iron-rich foods, and listed in rapid-fire succession foods my daughter would never, ever eat....and lentils. I realized I had never made lentils for my daughter. In fact, I wasn't sure if I had ever made lentils for myself. Inspiration struck! I picked up a box of French Le Puy Lentils at random, and began experimenting.
Here's what I learned. These tiny green French lentils are much tastier (in my opinion) than the bigger ones. They have a more pleasing texture. In addition, unlike many legumes, they don't need to be soaked or any sort of big fuss. You just cook them up. They are great warm, with fish for dinner. Then I eat them cold the next day for lunch. The best thing of all, they are low in calories, and high in protein and iron. Here's my favorite way to make them.
French Lentil Salad
1.25 cups of French green lentils (I use the Roland brand)
1 bay leaf
a few sprigs of fresh thyme (I'm sure you can sprinkle a pinch of dried instead)
1 large carrot, peeled and diced
2 stalks of celery, diced (if you like fennel, you can also use this, but I find celery more kid friendly)
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
lemon wedges
lots of sea salt and black pepper
Rinse the lentils. This is trickier than it sounds. I wrap them up tight in cheesecloth and run the water through the bundle. These little guys have a way of sneaking all over your kitchen if you don't contain them in the rinsing process! Put the rinsed lentils in a large saucepan and cover with water by 3-4 inches. Add the bay leaf and thyme. Bring the concoction to a boil, and then reduce heat. Now add a dash of salt (in my case, a lot of salt!) and simmer them for about 20 minutes.
While they are simmering, saute carrots, onions and celery (or fennel) in olive oil. Season them with salt and pepper until tender. Drain the lentils- you can use the cheesecloth for this too- and discard the bay leaf and thyme.
Then you combine the veggies and the lentils, stir up a bit, add more salt and pepper to your taste. Add an additional 1 tbsp of olive oil. Serve with lemon wedge, so your little diners can decide if they want the extra zing of lemon. If you want a real treat, add crumbled goat cheese. Delicious.
