When I went looking for recipes for a New Year’s dinner I learned something very interesting. That there are two foods that are traditionally served as New Year’s Eve dishes because they bring good luck – one is pork (a symbol of prosperity and plenty) and the other is lentils (thought to be considered for their round, coin-like shape to bring financial prosperity in the New Year). Who knew?
For our purposes, we’re going to focus on the Lentil as our Food of the Month. The Lentil (lens culinaris) is a legume. Lentils contain high levels of proteins, including the essential amino acids isoleucine and lysine. This makes them an excellent source of inexpensive protein, and an exceptional diet staple for vegetarians. Apart from a high level of proteins, lentils also contain dietary fiber, folate, vitamin B1 and minerals and like spinach, are they a good source of iron as well.
Lentils are inexpensive and if kept in a sealed container will store for long periods of time. They cannot be eaten raw, but they are easy to cook and are frequently featured in stews, soups and side dish recipes.
So if they’re so great, then why don’t more people cook with them? Maybe it’s because, unfortunately, Lentils are not pretty. While they have a pleasing round shape and come in several sizes and colors, they are just not the most attractive food in the pantry. But if you can get around that then you will be surprising pleased at how they taste – rich, nutty, smooth and satisfying are a few words that come to mind. They absorb other flavors readily and are terrific accompanied by rice to round out your meal.
We’ve found a really nice recipe to introduce you to Lentils, and hopefully this recipe will also bring you prosperity in the New Year!
Lentil Soup
You won’t believe how easy it is to make this hearty and heart-warming lentil soup. Ham is used for flavoring, but you may substitute bacon, if you wish. Recipe may be frozen.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours, 20 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours, 25 minutes
Ingredients:
Ham or bacon pieces to taste
2-1/2 cups or 1 (16-ounce) package dried lentils
6 cups chicken broth
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup grated carrots
4 Tbsp butter or margarine
1 tsp dried thyme, crushed
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
Salt and white pepper to taste
Preparation:
In a large soup pot over medium-high heat, combine ham or bacon pieces, lentils, and chicken broth; bring just to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer 1 to 1-1/2 hours or until lentils are soft.
Remove 2 cups of cooked lentils and place into food processor or blender bowl; let cool 5 minutes (if you do not let cool slightly before processing, mixture will explode out of container and make a mess in your kitchen). After cooling, whirl until pureed. Stir pureed lentils into soup mixture.
In a medium frying pan over medium-high heat, sauté onion and carrots in butter or margarine until limp, but do not brown; add to lentils. Add thyme, nutmeg, salt, and white pepper. Simmer another 30 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.
Yield: 6 servings
Source: What’s Cooking America by Linda Stradley and Andra Cook (Falcon Pub)