‘Meatier’ Meatless Mondays with A Most Reluctant Chef
Serves 2:
12-15 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup puy lentils
1/3 cup red wine (or red wine vinegar)
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 white onion, sliced into half rings
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 cloves of garlic, chopped roughly
2 roasted red peppers (from a jar, or roast with the tomatoes), chopped roughly
a few sprigs of fresh thyme
handful of parsley, finely chopped
1 big handful of fresh spinach
preheat oven to 130 c
Lay the halved cherry tomatoes cut side up on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper. Drizzle with olive oil and scatter some thyme leaves over the top. Roast in the oven for 40 -50 minutes or until dried out.
While the tomatoes are cooking, place the lentils in a saucepan on the stove and stir the red wine in. Then add 1 1/2 cups of water and the tomato paste into the pan. Bring to the boil and then let simmer for about 20 minutes or until the lentils are tender but not too soft.
Add the onions to a frying pan on a low heat with the balsamic vinegar, a drizzle of olive oil and a few thyme leaves. After 10 minutes add the garlic. Continue cooking the onions on a low heat for 20 minutes and then mix into the lentils with the peppers, spinach and parsley. Top with the roasted tomatoes and season to taste.