Warm Spiced Lentils

Serve this dish with pita bread wedges. Make sure not to overcook the lentils, or they will split and their texture will suffer. Substitute red or yellow lentils, if you prefer.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1/3 cup lentil mixture and 1 lemon wedge)

Ingredients

• 1  cup  petite green lentils
• 1  small onion, peeled
• 4  whole cloves
• 2  bay leaves
• 1  (2-inch) lemon rind strip
• 1  tablespoon  extravirgin olive oil
• 3/4  cup  chopped red onion
• 1  cup  chopped seeded tomato
• 3/4  teaspoon  ground ginger
• 3/4  teaspoon  ground cumin
• 1/2  teaspoon  ground turmeric
• 1/2  teaspoon  Hungarian sweet paprika
• 1/8  teaspoon  ground red pepper
• 3  garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh cilantro
• 3  tablespoons  chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 1/2  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/8  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 8  lemon wedges

Preparation

Place lentils in a large saucepan, and cover with water to 2 inches above lentils. Stud whole onion with cloves. Add studded onion, bay leaves, and rind to pan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until lentils are just tender. Drain well. Discard onion, bay leaves, and rind.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add chopped red onion; cook 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in tomato and the next 6 ingredients (through garlic); cook 2 minutes. Stir in lentils, cilantro, and parsley; cook 2 minutes. Stir in juice, salt, and black pepper. Serve warm with lemon wedges.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

112 (17% from fat)

Fat:

2.1g (sat 0.3g,mono 1.3g,poly 0.3g)

Protein:

7.4g

Carbohydrate:

17.2g

Fiber:

8.2g

Cholesterol:

0.0mg

Iron:

2.6mg

Sodium:

152mg

Calcium:

25mg