Warm Lentil Salad

Recipe by Amanda DeLaura

The abundant amounts of lentils and halloumi perfectly transforms any typical salad into a cozy fall meal. For all of you reading from Southern California, I’ve incorporated raw honey as a means to help with the intolerably bad allergies everyone is currently suffering from. So please go buy yourself some local and raw honey. If you consume about one teaspoon a day it should help with your allergies, as long as you keep it raw. Do not bake it, do not add it to your hot tea, etc. Happy cooking and bon appétit!

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup black lentils

2 bayleaves

1/8 tsp ground cumin

1/8 tsp ground cloves

1/8 tsp salt

3 whole black peppercorns

1 whole cardamom pod

4 Tbsp olive oil, divided

3 thinly sliced scallions, whites & greens separated

Zest of 1/2 lemon

1 Tbsp minced ginger

1 Tbsp minced garlic

1/8 tsp whole cumin seeds

1/8 tsp red chili flakes

2 Tbsp white wine vinegar

2 large pieces halloumi cheese

1 box of baby rocket (arugula)

2 tsp raw, local honey

1/4 cup unsweetened dried cranberries (or cherries)

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Directions:

1. Add 1 cup lentils, 2 bayleaves, 1/8 tsp cumin, 1/8 tsp cloves, 1/8 tsp salt, 3 peppercorns and 1 cardamom pod to a small sauce pan. Cover the lentils with about 3 to 4 inches of water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 16 minutes. Drain the lentils through a small colander and set aside.

2. While the lentils are simmering, heat 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a well-seasoned small cast iron skillet. Once heated and shimmering add the sliced white parts of the 3 scallions, zest of 1/2 lemon, 1 Tbsp ginger, 1 Tbsp garlic, 1/8 tsp cumin seeds and 1/8 tsp red chili flakes. Let the mixture cook for about 2 minutes, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon until the ginger and garlic are softened and aromatic. If the ginger or garlic begin to burn, reduce the heat to a low or remove the skillet from heat sporadically in order to control the temperature of the cast iron skillet (cast iron skillets hold heat very well so they can overheat incredibly quickly and unfortunately take a long time to cool back down, so be sure to not overheat your skillet as it’s easy to burn what's inside when it overheats). Once slightly browned and aromatic, remove the skillet from the heat and separately whisk together the 2 Tbsp of white wine vinegar and the remaining 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a small bowl. Pour the garlic/ginger mixture into the bowl and whisk all of the ingredients together until combined. Wipe the skillet down with a wet paper towel and cook the halloumi in the skillet on medium-low heat for three minutes. Flip, cover the halloumi with a lid and continue to cook for three minutes or until browned, softened and beginning to melt. Remove from the heat, chop the melted cheese into bite-sized pieces and drizzle the 2 tsp of honey over the halloumi.
3. Immediately combine the salad by tossing the cooked lentils, arugula and warm dressing with your hands or small tongs. Plate the salad onto a large platter or shallow bowl, top with the chopped halloumi and garnish with the cilantro, remaining sliced green scallions and dried cranberries. Enjoy immediately! (You can keep this salad dressed up to 24 hours or wait make fantastic meal prep kits and dress it / heat the halloumi until right before serving.)