Swiss chard, puy lentils, tomato gratin

This is one of the best recipes I tried without knowing how swiss chard tastes which I found in my local farmers market and since then it is one of the main characters in my kitchen as the season allows.

If you would like to read more about farmers market and local eating have a look at this website and watch the video if you can.

And more links, the recipe is by famous Irish chef Dennis Cotter who has a special place in my heart:

Wild Garlic, gooseberries and me… Even the name of the book makes my mouth water : )

olive oil
black pepper and salt to season
breadcrumbs
250 – 300 gr of medium tomatoes – real recipe is with plum tomatoes but these are ok for me
100 – 150 gr of puy lentils – again I did it once with green lentils which were soaked one night, not as tasty as puy lentils but good
1 kg of swiss chard, with stalks
3 – 4 garlic cloves (real recipe says 2 but I am a garlic lover do not go out after dinner then!)
fresh thyme
100 ml white wine
50 gr parmesan or any other hard cheese – I used feta cheese once it was very delicious!

Here we go:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 C, slice the tomatoes and place them in a single layer on a tray, season with black pepper and olive oil roast for 15 – 20 minutes.
2. Boil the puy lentils for about 20 minutes, they should be tender, cool them under cold water.
3. Separate the chalks and the leaves, cook the leaves in boiling water for 5 minutes then chop them and mix with lentils in a bowl, add black pepper and salt.
4. Chop the garlic and stalks (not more than 2 cms thick) and fresh thyme and cook them with olive oil for 5 minutes. Then, add the white wine and cover them with a piece if baking parchment and lower the hob and leave like that for 20 minutes, they will get soft. Do not let them dry.

5. (Dennis Cotter uses an oven dish about 24 x20 cm but I am happy with mine) Pour the lentil and leaf mixture over tomatoes then add the stalks with its juice and finally top up with breadcrumbs and cheese. Grill for 5 – 10 minutes. I let the cheese turn brown then serve it with wild rice or bulgur pilau.
6. Oh! I add some lemon juice over the leaves before I serve and I like it very much!

Believe me this dish is an art! Enjoy and let me know how you find it!

Lentil Kofte

Hello,

Well, I cooked these lovely lentil koftes for the Greek Easter weekend we had with friends, mostly drinking and eating lovely food.

It is very easy and a good mezze to have next to meaty stuff as well as by itself. Me? I can eat it even first thing in the morning

Here are the ingredients:

• 1 glass of red lentils
• 1 glass of bulgar wheat (fine bulgar)
• 5-6 spring onions
• 2 medium onions
• Spicy tomato paste (or preferably hot pepper paste, but it is hard to find)
• Hot pepper sauce, called Harissa, or just a red pepper
• Lettuce (little gem is preferable)
• A bunch of parsley
• Mint
• Black pepper
• Salt
• Olive oil
• Water – 3/4 glasses

1. Boil the red lentils with 3 or 4 glasses of water until they get very soft – almost melting.
2. Add a glass of bulgar wheat to the lentil mixture. This will make the mixture dry out a bit, so that it is firm but not sticky. Let it cool down until you can hold it in your hands. Taste it – if the bulgar wheat inside the mixture is not soft enough, add half or a glass of hot water to soak it up.
3. Chop the onions finely and cook them in olive oil then add the pepper paste and harissa or red pepper, mix it well.
4. Add the onion and pepper mixture over your already cooled down lentil & bulgar wheat and mix them well.
5. Add some salt, black pepper and mint.
6. Chop the spring onions and parsley and add them to this mixture, stir well. It should not be too dry not too wet, make some balls with it and put them over little gem lettuce on a plate.
7. Cool it down for an hour or so before you eat it!