Lentil and Vegetable Stew with Kale

I knew I jinxed myself when I wrote that I was going to always post on Sundays from now on... I got sick last Sunday and have been sick pretty much since then. Never have I been more annoyed at myself for missing the free flu shot at work this year. Every time I don't get a flu shot, I come down with the flu. At least this time it wasn't over Christmas. I am now mostly recovered, but haven't been able to workout and missed a lot of work. I probably should have missed more than I did, too, since everyone made sure to tell me how terrible I looked on Wednesday. Tomorrow will be my first run since last Saturday, and the Colfax Marathon is coming up on May 15! I had intended to get caught up this week before school started up again, and ended up further behind. Oh, well. Veg time watching bad daytime TV wasn't too bad in retrospect, and since Mom's in town, I got to have someone take care of me for once. 

Spring quarter of school started today. I can't believe the difference an extra quarter makes. I feel like I am fully in the groove of being a student. It makes me so much more productive all around too. I just don't waste time. During my week off (the week before I got sick), I feel like I was totally unproductive. I am taking IT Strategies and Marketing. We had to fill out a profile about our current knowledge base for IT. I wrote that I am friends with the IT group at work, and I really like the British TV Show "The IT Crowd." I also know exactly who I need to call whenever something computer related breaks. I have a lot to learn.

I bought French lentils almost two months ago now, wanting to incorporate more lentils into my diet. According to Wikipedia, lentils have the third highest amount of protein in a plant form after soybeans and hemp. 3.5 oz of lentils (100g) has 26 grams of protein. Not bad. Not bad at all. I also impressed myself with this recipe because it calls for two additional ingredients that I had never used before: kale and rutabaga. Well, if I'm being totally honest, there was a third ingredient that I forgot to put on my shopping list that would have been a first as well, celery root. I had eaten kale and celery root before, but never cooked it before. I am unclear if I have ever had rutabaga, and after tonight, I still haven't as I realized when I got home and was looking up how to prepare it online, I seem to have purchased a turnip instead (they're in the same family)... oops. 

This recipe was adapted from one found on Epicurious.com under the same name, and is originally from the March, 2011 issue of Bon Appetit Magazine. For Original Recipe Click Here. The main changes I made were too add cumin and more herbes de Provence than called for, and I used French Lentils instead of brown. From what I can tell, French Lentils are more flavorful, and keep their shape and texture exceedingly well. They take about 10 minutes longer to cook, though, so that is reflected in my cooking times. I also decided to go without any oil. I've figured out that if I am cooking soup or stew, I can cook the onion and other ingredients for not much time without them burning on the pan, then I add the rest of the liquids, and am none-the-wiser for it afterwards. 

I am estimating that this recipe will provide 8 servings. If anyone is reading this who follows Weight Watchers, it has a Points Plus value of only 5. Almost too rediculously healthy for its own good. Start to finish was about an hour and a half for me because of all the prep for the kale and other veggies. Actual cook time wasn't bad.

Ingredients:

1 large onion, chopped 

2 large carrots, chopped 

1 medium celery root, peeled, chopped (in absentia in my case, but I'm leaving this here as a place holder to remember when I make this again...)

1 medium rutabaga, peeled, chopped (2 cups) (my turnip worked great - apparently the main difference is that the rutabage has a somewhat stronger flavor)

1 pound French Lentils

1 tablespoon herbes de Provence (used more than that)

1 tablespoon cumin 

8 cups water

1 large bunch kale (About 9 ounces), ribs removes, leaves coarsely chopped (took forever in my opinion. I'm wondering about the potential of using frozen in the future...)

1. In a large pot, combine onion, carrots, celery and rutabaga. Cook on medium heat until the veggies verge on sticking to the bottom of the pot (5 or so minutes.)

2. Add the rest of the ingredients, turn the heat up, and bring to a boil. (The kale takes up a ton of room in the pot until it cooks. I kindof freaked out about this and added an extra cup of water. Then the kale cooked down and I felt a bit stupid for freaking out...) (10 or so minutes)

3. Lower the heat, partially cover the pot, and cook for 30 minutes.

Done. Super easy recipe to make. The prep was the most annoying part. Will make again. I liked it a lot, and the lentils will add plenty of variety to what I've been eating. The cumin gives it a bit more of an Indian taste overall, and that doesn't go with the herbes de provence really, but it worked for me. I also read that the cumin is supposed to help with some of the less appealing side effects of beans/lentils... while I am immune to the effect that beans have on some people since I eat so many of them, I thought I'd add cumin, since this recipe needed more spice than what was originally included anyway.