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A Bit of Green

FOOD

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Recipes of the month

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Ingredients For the salad:

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 1⁄2 large red bell pepper, deseeded, pith removed, cut into halves

1 cup puy lentils, rinsed several times and drained

3 cups cold water

pinch sea salt

1 small onion, diced

2 celery stalks, diced

2 carrots, peeled and diced

Handful parsley, rinsed, patted dry, stems removed, finely chopped Fresh black pepper

Sea salt


IngredientsFor Dressing:

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 small garlic cloves/shallots, roughly chopped

½ teaspoon sea salt

5 tablespoons lemon juice

1 ½ tablespoons white wine vinegar

1 ½ – 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Mediterranean-Style Roasted Red Pepper & Lentil Salad w/Lemon Vinaigrette


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Directions:

Dress pepper halves with olive oil. Roast in convection oven at 400 F for 20 minutes or until very soft and crisp at edges. Let cool. Then dice into 1⁄4 inch cubes. Set aside in large mixing bowl.Add lentils and cold water to sauce pot and bring to a boil.
Add salt, reduce heat to low, and simmer covered for 20 minutes or until al dente. Remove from heat, drain and let cool. Then transfer to large mixing bowl holding pepper.
Gently mix in carrots, celery, onions and parsley into bowl with lentils. Add salt and pepper.
For dressing, add all ingredients except olive oil into a blender. Blend on high for 10 seconds. Gradually add oil and blend again until dressing is fully emulsified and smooth. Pour 1⁄2 cup to 3⁄4 dressing over lentils and stir gently with a wooden spoon to incorporate.

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Ingredients:

1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas or garbanzo beans (I use Bush's Garbanzo Beans)

1 large ripe avocado

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

2 tablespoons chopped green onion

Juice from 1 lime

Salt and pepper, to taste

Bread of your choice (I use whole wheat bread)

Fresh spinach leaves or other sandwich toppings: lettuce, tomato slices, sprouts, etc.


Directions:

1. Rinse and drain the chickpeas. Place on a paper towel and remove the outer skins. You can leave them on, but I like to remove them.

2. In a medium bowl, using a fork or potato masher smash the chickpeas and avocado together. Add in cilantro, green onion, and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

3. Spread salad on bread and top with your favorite sandwich toppings. I like to add fresh spinach leaves.

Note: This salad also makes a great dip. Serve with cut up veggies, crackers, or pita chips. Also, this salad is best eaten the day it is made because it will turn brown due to the avocado.

Smashed Chickpea and Avocado Salad Sandwich


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I'm quite fond of chickpea salad sandwiches and the addition of avocado makes it very creamy tasting, while eliminating the mayonnaise. It takes about 5 minutes to make it, and you can tailor the sandwich to your own tastes by adding different toppings.
I think it would also make a great snack if you used it as a dip for vegetables.We have lots more delicious recipes in our food section.
This recipe is from the website Two Peas and Their Pod. This Smashed Chickpea & Avocado Salad Sandwich is a great quick and easy lunch option that is good for you too! The salad also makes a great dip!


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Ingredients:

2 to 3 tbsp crushed garlic

1 small can tomato paste or 1 cup crushed tomatoes

1 tbsp paprika

1 tsp turmeric

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cumin (or 1 tbsp if you don't use garam masala)

2 tsp garam masala

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 1/2 cups water

1 1/2 cups whipping cream


Directions:

Heat oil in a medium pot for 1 minute. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute, or until golden. It will become slightly sticky, but keep stirring. Add tomato paste or crushed tomatoes and stir well. then reduce the heat to low and add paprika, turmeric, salt, cumin, garam masala, coriander and cayenne. Stir well and saute for 4 minutes. Stir in water and cream.

Vegetarian: Indian Butter Chickpeas


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One of the things I hear from people who have become vegetarian is that they miss some of their favourite dishes from their meat eating days. If you are missing the taste and texture of a big rib-eye steak, I can't help you out, but if you miss particular sauces or rubs or marinades, you can usually make them and use a different source of protein, often tofu.
I found this recipe for Butter Chicken Schnitzel which already treated the sauce as a dip rather than putting the chicken straight into it as it is made traditionally. I just made myself some chickpeas with some Indian spices and served the butter sauce along side.
If you like, you can pour the sauce over top.
This recipe is from Vij's at Home, Relax Honey cookbook by Vancouver chef Vikram Vij and his wife and partner Meeru Dhalwala.It's designed as a kind of east meets west recipe that would appeal to their young daughters who want chicken fingers, but with a definite Indian dipping sauce.
Interestingly enough, there is no butter in this recipe for butter chicken, but Mr. Vij is a celebrated chef and cookbook author, and I am not, so who am I to say? What I can say is that in a sea of recipes for butter chicken this is a more pared down and simpler to make version than I have made in the past and was totally delicious.
I just sauteed some onion and garlic for a couple of minutes, added some sliced carrots and cooked them until almost tender. Then I added a bit of ground cumin, ground coriander, turmeric, a bit of cayenne and salt. Then I added a small can of drained and rinsed chickpeas and a handful of leftover rice. I stirred that all together for a few minutes until everything was heated through and then served it with the sauce. In increased the amount of tomato from 3/4 of a cup to 1 cup because I found the sauce a little bit thin.

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Local farmers market of the month


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The Ashmont Peabody Square Farmers' Market
returns for a second season Friday, July 9, at a new location - the Ashmont Station Plaza at the corner of Dot Ave and Ashmont Street. The market will run every Friday, 3-7 PM, through October 29.
Located at Ashmont Station Plaza, corner of Dorchester Ave and Ashmont Street. For more information log in here to their face book page.


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