Red Lentil Dahl Oatmeal (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

1 Comment February 19, 2015 Simone

I have recently discovered the wonders of savory oatmeal.

I love oatmeal. I can eat it morning, noon or night, hot or cold. It’s all the same to me. But I am trying to lessen the amount of sugar in my diet, and I realize that I consume most of my sugar during breakfast. This needed to stop.

This is me combining my favorite foods – red lentil dahl and oatmeal – to create a hearty breakfast to get me off to a good start – without sugar.

1 ½ cup chicken broth or vegetable broth (to make it vegan/vegetarian)

½ cup red lentils

1 cup diced tomatoes

1 cup rolled, old-fashioned oats (gluten-free if this is an issue)

1 tbsp garam masala (Club House seasoning brand is my personal fav; otherwise, use a blend of cinnamon, cumin, cardamom, garlic powder, onion powder and salt)

¼ cup coconut milk

1 tbsp Madras curry

1 tsp cumin

Salt, to taste (this depends on how much salt there is in your vegetable broth, curry powder and/or garam masala)

In a medium saucepan, cook your red lentils and oats together with the vegetable broth, garam masala, curry, cumin and salt. This should take 10 to 15 minutes.
Stir in the diced tomatoes and coconut milk. Serve warm. Add kale or coriander if you’d like.

On another note, I’m entering this recipe into the 2015 Canadian Lentils Recipe Revelation Challenge! Yay! Likes and repins of my recipe count as a portion of the total scoring, so please like it and repin it! Here’s the direct link: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/214554369724083666/

Coconut Carob Lentil Muffins (Gluten-Free, Vegan, Refined Sugar-Free)

4 Comments February 19, 2015 Simone

The Bible says that love covers a multitude of sins. So does chocolate. Or carob.

I have come to realize that chocolate and carob will cover any other odd elements you may introduce into a dessert or otherwise sweet good – zucchini, spinach, carrot, lentils…

Now, I’m not calling lentils a sin – they are good for you – but the carob in this recipe does a really good job of masking this protein-packed pulse. I used carob instead of chocolate because carob is the caffeine-free alternative to chocolate. However, feel free to use cocoa if it suits your fancy.

These muffins are great as a morning breakfast or mid-afternoon snack.

½ cup red lentils

1 cup gluten-free oat flour or gluten-free baking flour (or 1 cup all-purpose flour)

¼ cup carob powder (or cocoa powder)

½ cup apple sauce

¼ cup shredded coconut

¼ tsp salt

¼ cup coconut beverage (not coconut milk), non-dairy milk or water

¼ cup coconut sugar

¼ cup carob chips (or chocolate chips)

1 ½ tsp baking powder

¼ cup rolled/old-fashioned oats (gluten-free) for garnish

Note: Carob powder is naturally sweeter than cocoa powder. Thus, if using cocoa powder or chocolate chips, you may want to increase the amount of sugar used in this recipe.

Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit. Grease a muffin pan.
Cook the lentils according to package directions. Set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients. Mix well. Create a little well in the centre of your ingredients in the bowl, and add your wet ingredients, including your lentils. Mix well. Add your carob chips and gently stir until incorporated.
Pour your batter into your prepared muffin pan. Sprinkle oats onto each muffin and place the pan into oven.
Bake for 35 minutes in the oven or until tooth-pick comes out clean.
Let cool in muffin tins and then transfer to a cooling rack.
Serve warm or cool. These can also be frozen.

Curry Lentil Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free and Paleo option)

Leave a comment February 19, 2015 Simone

I’m convinced that everything tastes better with curry. You’ll see what I mean when you make this salad. Enjoy.

For the salad:

1 cup green lentils (it’s the main component, but leave out if making this paleo)

1 lb of grilled chicken breast, chopped (optional)

1 apple, chopped (Pink Lady, Honey Crisp, Fuji or Royal Gala are excellent choices)

A handful (about 1 cup) of baby spinach or roughly torn apart kale (dinosaur/black kale preferably) (optional)

1 mango, sliced thin

2 tbsp dried cranberries or pomegranate arils

½ cup walnut pieces, toasted (toasting your nuts makes ALL the difference. Trust me.)

For the salad dressing:

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar (or balsamic vinegar)

2 ½ tbsp honey or coconut nectar

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tbsp Jamaican curry powder (pick a brand with salt; if not, add 1/8 tsp of salt to your dressing)

1/8 tsp salt, or to taste (if curry powder doesn’t already have salt)

¼ cup olive oil

Cook your lentils according to package directions. Set aside and let cool (refrigeration is recommended).
In a small bowl, whisk together the salad dressing ingredients (they can even be mixed in a food processor or blender). Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine all of the salad ingredients with your salad dressing. Serve chilled.