Lentils are available year round, and though this is a winter dish if you go by the seasons because that's when oranges come to market, should you be able to find good oranges in the summer this will be quite nice then too. To serve 4-6:
Prep Time: 4 hours, 20 minutes
Cook Time: 75 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2/3 pound (300 g) dried lentils
- 2 ripe oranges
- 2 tablespoons extravirgin olive oil
- A small sweet red onion (or a small Vidalia)
- The heart of a head of celery, with leaves
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
Soak the lentils in cold water for 3 hours, rinse them, and boil them until soft but not mushy (30 minutes or so), seasoning them with salt when just before they're done. Drain them and let them cool. While they're cooking rinse the celery and cut the stalks crosswise into rounds, peel and thinly slice the onion, separating the rings, and peel one of the oranges, trimming away the membranes of the sections and then cutting them up crosswise. Squeeze the other and filter the juice. Combine the juice with the olive oil and season the mixture with a dash of freshly ground pepper. Combine the onions, celery, orange pieces and lentils in a bowl and season the salad with the orange juice and oil. Serve at once, or chill everything lightly.
Yield: 4-6 servings lentils with oranges.
Yield: 4-6 servings lentils with oranges.
