YMCA Healthy Living Magazine, powered by n4 food and health Autumn 2018 | Page 12

CAROLINE TRICKEY HEIDI SZE
Caroline is a culinary Nutritionist and Dietitian.
She is also the author of Veggie-licious: How to
cook with lentils, chickpeas, beans, tofu and eat
more plant-based foods. Find out more at
healthyhomecafe.com Heidi is a Dietitian and Nutritionist with a passion for
helping people have fun with their food, enjoy eating
good food and learn how to make the most nourishing
meals for their body. Find out more at
applesundermybed.com
LENTIL RECIPES:
QUICK LENTIL CURRY
Serves: 4
Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large brown onion, finely diced
2 large cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon black mustard seeds
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1½ cups red lentils, rinsed
400g tin diced tomatoes
3 cups vegetable stock
1 large or 2 small eggplants, diced in 2–3cm
squares
3 cups Jap pumpkin, diced in 2–3cm squares
1 cup green beans, tops removed
½-1 cup coconut milk
2 cups baby spinach leaves
To serve
} } Cooked brown rice, barley or quinoa
(or wholegrain toast)
} } Fresh coriander leaves
} } Greek yoghurt or toasted cashews
} } Steamed green beans or broccoli
Method
1 Heat a large pan over medium heat
and when hot add the oil, onion and
garlic and sauté until onion is soft.
2 Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds
and turmeric and cook until the
seeds start to pop. Then add lentils, tomatoes, stock, eggplant and
pumpkin and bring to the boil. Place a lid on the pan, turn the heat down
and simmer for 10 minutes.
3 Add green beans, stir through, replace lid and cook for a further five
minutes or until vegetables are tender and lentils are cooked. When
cooked, stir through half a cup coconut milk (or more if the curry is
quite thick) and spinach leaves, then turn heat off.
4 Serve on a bed of brown rice, barley, quinoa or a mixture of all three. Top
with yoghurt, or toasted cashews (for a vegan version), and fresh
coriander leaves.
Notes: If you are in a hurry and don’t have time for the above suggested
grains to cook, serve with wholegrain toast. Or for a lighter meal, omit the
grains and serve with steamed green beans or broccoli.
TIP: This curry can be made ahead and
kept in the fridge for up to four days or
can be frozen for up to one month.
LENTIL, HALOUMI AND
Method
FENNEL SALAD
Serves: 3
Ingredients
1 cup black beluga lentils or French green lentils
(lentilles du Puy)
2 cups water or broth
1 large bay leaf
1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
1 handful of fennel fronds, finely chopped (if your
fennel doesn't have fronds, use parsley)
1 red capsicum, diced
100g haloumi, cut into 2.5cm wide strips
¼ cup pepitas, lightly toasted
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
3 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
(plus extra to taste)
1 To cook the lentils, wash and
then place in a pot of water (or
broth) with a bay leaf. Bring to
the boil, then reduce to a simmer.
Cook for around 15 minutes until just tender (taste to check), then
remove from heat (draining any excess water) and cover with a lid.
Leave them to continue cooking off the heat for 10 minutes. Note:
soaking lentils before cooking them is not necessary but it may aid
in digestion and nutrient absorption.
2 Chop the salad ingredients, toast the pepitas and prepare the oil
and vinegar dressing in a jar.
3 To cook the haloumi, put olive oil in a skillet and when hot, fry the
pieces until golden. Flip them over and cook until golden on the
other side. This usually takes two to three minutes in total.
Remove them and slice into bite-sized pieces.
4 Assemble the lentils, fennel, capsicum and haloumi in bowls.
Scatter the fronds, drizzle the dressing and add the pepitas. Add
extra apple cider vinegar to taste.
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YMCA HEALTHY LIVING MAGAZINE AUTUMN 2018