Hello friends in the Hive realm.
It is spring here in Canada when the flowers poke their heads from the ground and we see a little more sun. Yesterday it was 20C and balmy. I had to work. Today is a day off for us, and it's cold with snow flurries to start the day, so there will not be a picnic.
Instead I will make a hearty salad using roasted roots and beluga lentils. I happened to find some beluga lentils, which are my all time favourite lentils. These lentils are also known as black lentils and caviar lentils. I rarely see them on the shelf. Last week I saw them and without hesitation, added them to the basket.
I did soak them although they cook easily without soaking.
I don't use root vegetables often enough but for this dish, and the wintery weather, I thought it would be fitting.
I chose butternut squash, rainbow carrots, beet and celeriac. There are onions and garlic in the photo but I changed my mind about roasting them. I would use onion raw later and also garlic in the pesto.
We have several squash varieties available here. I chose one that I thought would be the easiest to peel. The butternut squash is quite smooth and has few seeds. It was still a fight to peel it. If I had roasted it whole I could have taken the peel off at the end. I had other intentions.
The celeriac is something I am giving attention to more lately, using it for soup stock. I thought why not roast it this time.
Celeriac is the root of the celery. I knew this, but a co-worker tried to tell me I was wrong. He almost had me convinced. He's French so he must have gotten confused with something else.
I wanted to dice all of the roots before putting them in the oven.
It's a matter of preference on what size the roots are kept. I chose small to go with the little lentils. Plus I figured it would be faster to roast.
The hardest part was now done. I finally got them in the pan and ready to put them in the oven.
I had some fresh thyme and fresh rosemary to put in the pan. These two herbs go well with roots. This was going to have a western winter vibe.
I have been consuming quite a bit of highly spiced foods lately. After that I have to calm down a bit and get back to my Canadian-ish roots. Get it?
Roasted roots and lentil salad
1 1/2 cup dried beluga lentils
150g carrots
350g celeriac
250g beets
350g butternut squash
150g kale
200g cabbage
150g red onion
150g cherry tomato
150 walnuts
60g sunflower seeds
2 tablespoons maple syrup for walnuts
While the lentils cooked covered in water with a clove of garlic and bay leaf, I roasted the vegetables in a 400F oven.
The vegetables were covered for 20 minutes then finished off uncovered. I just kept checking until they were to my liking. Not too soft but cooked through. I didn't want them to mush when I mixed everything.
The lentils were cooked to the same point of tender but not mushy. I didn't measure the water, but it ended up needing more liquid to finish it off.
When the belugas were done, I spread them on a plate to cool faster. This salad could easily be served warm, but I opted for a cold salad. I would be serving it with the arugula pesto, which I did not want destroyed by heat.
I kept the vinaigrette simple to not interfere with the taste of the pesto which would hold the flavor for the salad.
Vinaigrette
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
I used only the leaves of the kale and made sure to chop it finely. It can be tough but once massaged with the dressing softens up and adds a nice texture to the salad along with some thinly sliced raw cabbage and some diced red onion. I added cherry tomatoes at the end.
When the lentils and roots were cooled, they were gently mixed together.
After everything is mixed together apart from the tomatoes and the arugula pesto, I drizzled on the vinaigrette.
This is the first time I have made arugula pesto. I never thought of it, until Marc told me he put arugula in our smoothie. I thought it was strange, but it tasted fine. This is when I realized that it would taste good as a pesto instead of the classic basil pesto for a change.
Arugula is very popular here and is in all stores all the time. It is a strong green yet delicate at the same time. I would have to describe the taste as peppery and nutty. I don't know if that would be it, but the taste and texture add something nice to a salad. This time I changed the texture into a cream.
Arugula pesto
1 1/2 cup soaked cashews
150g arugula
1/2 cup lemon jus or to taste preference
3 cloves garlic or to taste preference
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt to taste
Water to blend
I ended up using the juice of three lemons. I didn't get much juice out of each one.
To my surprise, I was able to get all of the arugula into the blender.
I knew the salad would not be complete without the added garnish of walnuts and sunflower seeds.
These have more nutrients raw, but I wanted the enjoyment of toasting them in a little oil and maple syrup, and a sprinkle of salt.
The sunflower seeds were added to the pan at the end.
I had some leftover croutons from another day which I added as well.
I didn't want to mix the arugula pesto in with the salad. This would have changed the look of the salad.
This was abundant for two people but it's nice to have something like this ready to eat when on the run, which is today.
This can last for a while in the fridge. I have enough pesto left to make another salad or some pasta with. I could have made half the amount but I was not sure how it would turn out. I am happy to have more leftover.