Ash Reshteh – Persian for “OMFG, this is good!”

This is my take on a classic Persian soup that in a fantastic way to use up a ton of greens and herbs that may be coming out of your garden or CSA bag. I honestly had some low expectations the first time I made this. It sounded like a pretty boring soup: healthfood masquerading as something fun. But rather than being uninspired glop, this turned out to be a hugely satisfying and incredibly delicious recipe—in part because of the use of a variety of wonderful garnishes. Being wrong has never been as deliciously pleasant.

Serve with a crap ton of garnishes and flatbread, if available.

Prep time: 3 cocktails

1 bunch Italian flat leaf parsley, stems removed
1-2 bunches cilantro, stems removed
1 cup fresh dill, stems removed
1 cup fresh basil, stems removed
Olive oil
1 ½ yellow onions, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic
½ tsp turmeric
1 TBSP zaatar
Ground black pepper
1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
¼-1/2 cup French green lentils
3 quarts vegetable stock, homemade or store-bought
1 pound frozen spinach or chard, chopped
6-8 ounces whole wheat linguini
1-2 pinches saffron
Lemon wedges

Garnishes should include at least a few of the following:
Fresh mint
Plain yogurt or sour cream
Fried scallions (you can make them yourself or buy a bag at an Asian grocer)
The greens of a bunch of scallions, chopped

Combine herbs in a food processor and pulse until you get to the point of having them coarsely chopped – maybe 6-8 pulses. You want the average piece to be a little smaller than your pinky fingernail. Set aside.

In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Once shimmering, add onions and sauté, stirring well, until they turn a little golden brown, about 15 minutes. Add garlic and sauté one more minute, stirring a few times. Add turmeric, zaatar, and a lot of fresh ground black pepper and stir until everything is well-integrated and fragrant, about 30-60 seconds.

Add garbanzo beans and lentils. Stir well for 30 seconds and add your veggie stock, frozen spinach or chard, and the herb mixture from the food processor. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook, covered for 60 minutes. Adding water if needed.

Now break your dried linguini in half and break each half again so that you end p with quarter-length noodles. Stir into the soup and stir frequently. Boil uncovered until the noodles are done and the lentils are soft – about 20-30 more minutes, adding more water if necessary.

When noodles are just about done, boil a very small amount of water. Crush up the saffron threads between your fingers and place in a small bowl. Pour a couple tablespoons of the boiling water over the threads and allow to steep for 2 minutes. Then add the saffron/water to the soup and stir well. Cook everything a couple more minutes and adjust taste, as necessary.

Serve with lemon wedges and garnishes.

Vegetarian Meatloaf

1 1/2 cups veggie stock, store-bought or homemade
2/3 cup brown lentils
1/2 cup TVP
1/2 pound crimini mushrooms, chopped up a bit
4 TBSP butter or a vegan substitute
1 onion, chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup raw cashews
2 cups bread crumbs
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup ketchup + more for topping and serving
1/4 cup barbecue sauce (homemade is best) + more for topping and serving
2 eggs (or egg substitutes like ground flax and water)
2 TBSP dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste
A couple handfuls of grated cheddar cheese (optional)

Preheat oven to 325F.

Bring the stock to a boil and add lentils. Cook until lentils are soft, adding more stock or water if necessary. Once lentils are fully cooked, simmer off any excess moisture. Remove from heat and mash lentils with potato masher.

While your lentils cook, bring a couple cups of water to a boil in a small pan.Once boiling, add TVP and and remove from heat. Let sit 5 minutes, then strain TVP and it set aside.

In a food processor, pulse the mushrooms until they are finely minced.

In a large frying pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Then add mushrooms and cook until they turn a shade darker and release some of their juices, about 4 minutes. Add onion, celery, and bell pepper and saute until they become nice and tender, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, saute a couple more minutes then transfer mixture to a large mixing bowl.

In your food process now process cashews into fine little pieces.

Add lentils, TVP, and cashews to the veggie mix in the mixing bowl, as well as bread crumbs, cumin, cilantro, ketchup, BBQ sauce, eggs/egg substitute, and Dijon. Mix well and add salt and pepper to taste (I usually have to add at least a teaspoon of salt and a good amount of pepper).

Spray a medium-sized loaf pan with cooking spray and transfer the mixture into the pan. Mold it into a meatloaf shape and make sure there's a small gap between the edge of the pan and the loaf so that when you add cheese and additional sauce later, it won't all dribble over the edges of the pan and make a mess.

Bake, uncovered, for 50 minutes, or until the top starts to get a bit browned and a tad crusty. Now take the pan out of the oven and slather the top with additional BBQ sauce and/or ketchup. Sprinkle the cheese on top of it all and return it to the oven. Increase heat to 375 and cook 12-15 more minutes.

Remove from oven and let it cool at least 10 minutes before cutting. Serve with additional ketchup and BBQ sauce on the side.

Fireball Chutney!

This toasty, spicy chutney adds some zing to any type of Indian dish where you want to add a little extra flavor and heat.

Prep time: 1/4 cocktail

1/4 cup chana dal (a type of split chickpea that's available at an Indian grocer or online)
8 dried red chilies (you can dial this up or down depending on personal preference)
8 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 1/2 tsp tamarind concentrate (I use Tamicon brand, others brands may vary in potency, so be careful!)
1/4 cup onion, chopped
2/3 tsp salt
Water or coconut milk to achieve the desired consistency

Over medium-low to medium heat, warm up the dal in a frying pan. Stirring constantly for about 5 minutes, fully toast (but don't burn!) the seeds.

Transfer the seeds to a coffee grinder and process into a smooth powder.

Transfer the chana dal powder and the other ingredients to a food processor and process until it's a smooth paste.

Truly Authentic Mesir Wot

A few years ago, I posted a really great mesir wot recipe. But after I spent the last couple years living in Ethiopia, I realized that while awesome, the recipe wasn't quite authentic. With the help of my good Ethiopian friend Ruti, I came up with this recipe that is more full-flavored and dead-on authentic. It's identical to the mesir wot I used to order at the little food shack across from my house.

Note—it’s important to NOT use a non-stick pan for this. The recipe involves scalding the lentils to the pot bottom and using a Teflon-coated pot will ruin the coating and ensure that you end up with a lot of Teflon flakes in your dinner. Use cast-iron, ceramic-lined, or a plain metal pot, like all old Ethiopian women do.

Prep time: 3 cocktails

4 TBSP oil
2 medium onions, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup red lentils
½ tsp ground cardamom
3 TBSP berbere
1 tsp salt or to taste
A pinch or two of sugar (optional)

Heat your large non-nonstick sauce pan, over medium to med-high heat with just the onions in it; no oil yet. (The idea is to sweat some of the moisture out before adding the oil and other ingredients.) Stir the onions almost constantly while doing this. Sweat them for several minutes, not allowing them to stick to the bottom, until they've become translucent. Add oil and sauté a few more minutes, stirring frequently. Add garlic, sauté a few additional minutes.

Now add the cardamom and berbere, as well as a couple tablespoons water. Reduce your heat a notch and stir very frequently for about 10 minutes, adding an additional splash of water if necessary to avoid sticking.

Add ¼ cup of water and lentils. Sauté, stirring with a metal spatula almost constantly, until water is absorbed. Continue adding water about ¼ cup at a time. The idea is that you want the lentils to scorch to the bottom a bit each time but not burn. You then scrape the caramelized lentil gunk into the rest of the wot to give it a sweet, nutty flavor. Continue doing this until the lentils are fully cooked. Then top off with enough water to give it a nice, wot consistency. Adjust seasoning an add salt and a bit of sugar, if necessary.

Serve with injera and other delicious Ethiopian vittles.

Election Night Special: Rich Curried Indian lentils

So India is the largest democracy in the world. So what better way to celebrate Election Day here than warming up on a cold night and following the action with some awesome Indian vittles?

Like many great ethnic foods out there, this dish is simple and super delicious. And if you're anything like me, you'll enjoy this with a prodigious volume of beer and some cabbage saag paneer as you watch the election results come in tonight. 

Prep time: 1 cocktail

1 ¼ cup French green or brown lentils

3 cups water

2 tsp salt

½ tsp turmeric

4 TBSP ghee or butter

1 tsp whole cumin seeds

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

4 medium-sized tomatoes

1-2 Tbsp chopped cilantro

Rinse and drain lentils. Then put in a large saucepan with water, salt and turmeric. Bring water to a boil, then cover and reduce heat. Continue to boil water until lentils are soft (about 30 minutes), stirring occasionally.

When lentils are ready, heat ghee in wok or saucepan over medium high heat. When hot, add the cumin seeds and let them fry a few seconds. Then add the grated ginger and tomatoes. Stir fry the tomato mixture a few minutes.

Pour the tomatoes over the lentils and mix well.

Serve with a very large pinch of cilantro over the stew. Good alone or served over brown rice.

Mesir Wot

**Update: check out my new authentic mesir wot recipe. While the new recipe is more authentic, this one is is just as good with it's brighter, lighter flavor. Take your pick!**

Mesir Wot is proof that vegan food can kick some serious ass if you know what you're doing. These spiced lentils are a vegetarian staple in Ethiopia. So good! Serve with injera and other radical Ethiopian goodies.

Prep time: 1 cocktail

1 cup red lentils
1/3 cup canola oil
1 medium onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tomatoes, chopped
Juice of 2 lemons
2 tsp berbere (click here for recipe)
¾ tsp salt
a few pinches of chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Injera (click here for recipe)

Combine the lentils with 2 cups of water. Bring to boil, then reduce to simmer, cover and cook until all the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

In a saucepan pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic, sauté until onion becomes a bit transparent. Stir in lentils and all remaining ingredients. Bring to boil. If it’s too soupy, simmer, stirring frequently until you reach desired consistency. Serve hot with injeera.

Nepalese Dal: The Sacred Honda Civic of the Culinary World

When I traveled to Nepal, this is what everybody ate. It’s called Dal Bhat, or lentils with rice. It’s impossible to overstate the importance of this dish in parts of India and Nepal. I was told that many people will go their entire lives without ever eating anything except this dish. During my few months there, I ate this for every meal myself.

While this dish excels in reliability, it lags a bit in sexy department.... It's kind of the Honda Civic of the culinary world. It's sacred to millions, but if you want some excitement for dinner, I recommend you make another Indian or Nepalese recipe and serve this as a side dish. Much like Steve Buscemi, dal bhat is always best in a supporting role.

Prep time: 1 cocktail

1 cup brown lentils
2 tsp ground coriander
½-inch piece ginger
2 tsp ground turmeric
½ pound fresh spinach or beet greens, chopped (optional)
2 TBSP ghee, butter, or oil
1 tsp whole cumin seeds
1 tsp salt
2 tsp lemon juice
A dash of cayenne
Prepared rice (I like Forbidden Black)

In medium-sized saucepan, bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Add lentils, coriander, ginger, and turmeric. Stirring occasionally, bring to boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer, peeking in occasionally to stir. Continue stirring occasionally until the lentils begin to soften, about 30 minutes.

Remove lid and add spinach or beet greens, if using.

After adding the greens, in a medium frying pan or wok, heat the ghee over medium-high heat. When it’s up to temperature, add the cumin and fry until seeds turn a nice golden-brown. Immediately transfer the ghee and seeds to the lentils being careful not to splatter. Also add the salt, lemon juice and cayenne. Stir well and cook another couple minutes before serving over rice.