Hearty Lentil Salad

In place of ordinary table salt, use sea salt. It's produced from the evaporation of sea water and contains natural iodine, an essential nutrient. Lentils, an often neglected legume, make this salad hearty and filling.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup lentils

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• 8 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

• 1/4 cup chopped red onion

• 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper

• 1/3 cup chopped celery

• 1/3 cup sliced fresh mushrooms

• 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes

• 1 tbs. fresh oregano, or 1 tsp. dried

• 1 1/2 tsp. fresh mint, or 1/2 tsp. dried 

• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper 

• 1/8 tsp. sea salt

VARIATION:

Add 1 cup tomato sauce and serve as a tomato-based side dish or over pasta.

Servings:4

This recipe is excerptedfrom The Garlic Cookbook, © 2000. Reprinted with permission from the publisher: Bristol Publishing Enterprises, Inc., P.O. Box 1737, San Leandro, California, 94577.

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David DiResta gives cooking demonstrations in the Boston area, works as a catering and retail consultant, and keeps up with current cooking and kitchenware trends. His other books (many coauthored with his wife Joanne) include Cooking with Parchment Paper, The Toaster Oven Cookbook, Sautés, and Oven and Rotisserie Roasting.