This is one of my favorite recipes from the Moosewood Restaurant’s cookbook. Protein and fiber from the red lentils make this a nice, hearty vegetarian meal that you can round out with a green salad. To make it vegan, just leave off the feta cheese. Enjoy!

Serves 4-6

Total cook time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup dry red lentils (3 cups cooked)

1 bay leaf

3 cups water

1 tsp olive oil

2 cups diced onions

2 large garlic cloves, pressed or minced

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

2 cups canned tomatoes (18-oz can), chopped and liquid reserved

1 ½ cups quartered artichoke hearts (9-oz package frozen or 15-oz can)

¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 lb farfalle, rotini, or spirali pasta

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Crumbled feta cheese (optional)

Instructions:

Bring the lentils, bay leaf, and water to a boil in a saucepan. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, until the lentils are tender.

While the lentils cook, heat the olive oil in a separate pan. Add the onions and saute on medium heat for about 5 minutes, until golden. Add the garlic, cumin, and coriander and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the lemon juice, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, and crushed red pepper and simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes. Drain the cooked lentils, reserving the cooking liquid, and add the lentils to the tomato and artichoke heart mixture. Simmer for 10 minutes more, adding about ½ cup of the reserved liquid if the sauce seems dry.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta until al dente. Drain the pasta and transfer it to a serving bowl. Top it with the lentil and artichoke heart sauce, add salt and pepper to taste, sprinkle with feta cheese, if desired, and serve immediately.

Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites: Flavorful Recipes for Healthful Meals. New York: Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., 1996.

Pasta, Lentils, and Artichoke Hearts

Alexandra Grove, Nutrition Student

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