Have you tried lentils?

As most of you know, I'm trying to introduce Meatless Mondays into my home.  My husband is on board with this and although I have always been very hesitant to give up meat completely and become vegetarian, I have to say that it's not that bad.  We have cut down the amount of beef we eat; we probably have beef once every two weeks.  I'm trying to stick with poultry, fish, shellfish, and pork.

Tonight's meatless meal comes from Ina Garten, also knows as The Barefoot Contessa.  I love most of her recipes because they are down to earth.  Stewed Lentils and Tomatoes does call for chicken broth/stock.  So if you want to make this a vegetarian meal, just substitute vegetable broth.

What you will need: olive oil, yellow onion, 3-4 carrots, 3 garlic cloves, 1 28oz can whole plum tomatoes, 1 cup lentils, 2 cups chicken broth, 1tsp curry powder, 3 tsp ground thyme, kosher salt, pepper

Chop the onion and carrots.  Heat the olive oil in a 3-4 quart pan.  Add the onions and carrots and cook for about 6-8 minutes.  Meanwhile, fit your food processor with a steel blade and place the tomatoes in the bowl.  Pulse until coarsely chopped. Alternatively, if you don't have a food processor, buy diced tomatoes. Rinse the lentils and pick over to make sure there are no stones. 

Once the onions are tender, add the garlic and cook for one minute. Add the tomatoes, lentils, broth, and seasonings.  I did about 2 tsp of salt and pepper to taste.  Stir together and heat to a boil.  Then reduce heat to a simmer and cook for about 40 minutes.  Check occasionally to be sure the liquid is simmering.  Remove from heat and let sit, covered for about ten minutes. 

Ina's recipe says to add a tablespoon of red wine vinegar before serving.  I did not do this. I don't care for red wine vinegar at all, but give it a try.

I served with biscuits and a chopped salad of cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, and ripped spinach leaves.