Lentil, Tomato and Basil Salad

Robyn Webb, our guest on Divas In Aprons, is an award winning cookbook author, nutritionist, and the Food Editor of Diabetes Forecast Magazine. Because of diabetes in her family, Robyn learned how important is is to eat good, nutritious foods. Robyn is an artist. Instead of paints and canvas, she uses spices, vegetables, and oil. Please, enjoy this wonderful recipe from Robyn!

4-6 servings

3 cups of water

1 cup Tru Roots Sprouted Green Lentils

several sprigs fresh thyme

1 garlic clove, smashed

1 large carrot, diced

1 small red pepper, diced

1 celery stalk, diced

1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters

Dressing:

3 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1 small shallot, finely minced

1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

1/3 cup olive oil

sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

1/2 cup chopped basil

1. Prepare the lentils. In a 2 quart pot, add the water, thyme and garlic. Bring the water to a boil. Add the lentils and cook for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat, cover and let stand for 2 minutes. Drain any excess water. Remove the garlic and thyme sprigs. Place the lentils in a bowl and let them cool to room temperature.

2. Add the carrots, red pepper, celery and cherry tomatoes to the lentils.

3. Prepare the dressing: Whisk together the vinegar, shallot and lemon juice. Slowly in a thin stream, add the olive oil. Whisk until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper. Add the dressing to the salad and toss gently.

4. Add the basil to the salad, toss again and correct for seasonings.

Photograph courtesy of Olga Berman

Notes:  this is an incredibly easy dish to prepare. I recommend you chop all the vegetables while the lentils are cooking and cooling. That way, everything will be ready at once.  I let the lentils be slightly warm when I added them to the vegetables. That way, once you pour the dressing over everything, the dressing soaks into the lentils quicker, making them more flavorful. If you are planning to have this dish as leftovers the next day, don’t add the basil to the entire dish at once: just add it to whatever amount you’ll be serving at the time.

Robyn has written 16 cookbooks, including the American Diabetes Association bestseller Diabetic Meals in 30 Minutes—Or Less! She has numerous media credits, including Food Network, Martha Stewart Radio, Lifetime Television, Discovery Channel, CNN, CBS, ABC, ESPN, and many more. Her work has been highlighted in the Washington Post, Woman’s Day, USA Today, Fine Cooking, and many online health, fitness, and food websites and magazines.   Robyn’s website iswww.RobynWebb.com, her popular blog with tips and recipes can be found at www.robynwebb.com/fabulousfoodfinds. She can be found on Twitter atwww.Twitter.com/RobynWebb and on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/RobynWebbMS