Puy Lentils

I'd never heard of Puy Lentils (also known as French Lentils), but I found this recipe in Tosca Reno's "The Eat Clean Diet Cookbook."  They are really great little legumes!  They are not floury like regular green or red lentils, and they keep their shape, even after long cook times, so they are optimal for salads.  We were having friends over for dinner, and as there were some dietary restrictions, I thought I'd give this a try.  Well, there were no leftovers...  so I guess it was a hit!  I didn't get a chance to take pictures, so these are stock photos, so you get the idea.  I'll be sure to take pictures when I make it next time, which will probably be very soon!


Puy Lentils
Ingredients:
1 medium purple onion, chopped
1 large stalk celery, chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
1 medium bunch chard, stems & leaves, well rinsed and chopped (stems & leaves separated)
1 tsp sea salt
2 tsp oil [recipe calls for olive, I use grapeseed]
1 3/4 c chicken/ vegetable broth or water
1 c Puy lentils, rinsed & drained
1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 tsp fresh oregano, chopped [I omitted for dietary restrictions]
juice of 1 lemon
same amount avocado oil [again, I used grapeseed]
* I also added some chopped baked chicken breasts (seasoned with salt & pepper), just to beef it up a bit and make it a more complete meal.

Directions:
In a large stock pot, place onino, celery, carrot, chard stems, 2 tsp oil, and 1/2 tsp sea salt.  Cover adn cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until vegetables begin to soften (don't over cook them here).
Add broth, lentils, nad herbs.  Bring to a full boil. Reduce heat and cover. Stir occasionally and make sure the lentils are just gettign soft.  This takes about 30 minutes.
Add chard leaves and cook until the leaves soften -- not more than 10 minutes.  Combine lemon juice and oil, season with about 1/2 to 1 tsp salt and pepper, and add to lentils. (I have a small mason jar that I combine dressings in, then put on the lid and shake, shake, shake.)  Stir to combine.

I served this with a sprouted rice & quinoa mix I got from Costco.