REAL Oatmeal Bread

Pour 2 c. boiling water over 1 c. oats. Add 1/2 c. molasses, 2 t. salt, 1 T. butter or coconut oil, 1 yeast cake dissolved in 1/2 c. warm water, and 6 c. flour (can sub part whole wheat or oat flour). Beat thoroughly, let rise, knead. Turn into 2 buttered loaf pans and let rise again. Bake at 375° for 50 mins.

This was my granny's recipe and I suspect it goes back many generations. In fact, in the odd little Massachusetts town where I grew up, one local bakery sold a bread very similar to this which they called "Goodenow bread" as Goodenows were one of the original founding families in the town in the 1600s. Cool, right?

Please note that one can make this bread gluten-free by using certified gluten-free oats and oat flour or gluten-free baking flour in place of the wheat flour. The consistency will be a little different, but it will still be delicious.

Potato-Chard Frittata

In a large oven-proof skillet, saute 1 sliced onion for about 5 mins. Add 1 bunch chard and 1 medium potato, both thinly sliced. Cover and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Stir in 2 cloves pressed garlic, 10 beaten eggs, 1 1/2 c. shredded cheese, 1 T. oregano, and salt to taste. Cook on medium for 5 mins then move to 375° oven and bake until the whole thing is set, about 15 mins more. Serve warm.

Not-Too-Rich Goat Cheese and Vegetable Tart

Lightly saute 2 cups chopped veggies, then place in bottom of prepared pie crust. In a separate bowl, beat together 1/2 container cottage cheese and 1/4 c. goat cheese with a little milk until light and fluffy. Add 2 eggs and beat again. Pour this mixture over the veggies and add optional salt and 1/2 t. dried oregano. Bake at 370° for about 45 mins, or until set.

I made this last night with a combination of fresh corn and zucchini, in a whole wheat crust (though I imagine a cornmeal crust would have been tasty too). It was light and fluffy, and even the goat-cheese skeptics at the table liked it because the goat cheese flavor was very mild. Next time I plan to make it with spinach and sweet red peppers.

Vegetarian Rice Noodles with Chili and Basil

Heat 1 T. coconut oil in a pan and add 2 c. veggies (large-cut red pepper, carrot, onion, and broccoli/rapini work well) plus 1-inch cubes of firm tofu. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, for about 8 mins. Add 1 T. oil and scramble 1 egg, beaten, in the bottom of the pan. Once egg is cooked add minced garlic, basil leaves, 1/4 c. soy sauce, chili sauce or powder to taste, and a dash Worcestershire sauce and stir. Remove from heat and toss with 2 c. cooked rice noodles.

This is not authentically anything, but it's cheap and easy and I like it!

White Bean Spread with Roasted Red Peppers (vegan)

Rinse 1 1/2 c. cooked white beans or 1 can organic white beans. Put in blender with 1 clove garlic, juice of 1/2 lemon, 1 T. balsamic vinegar, dash olive oil, 1 roasted red pepper, 1 t. dried oregano, and salt to taste. Blend well. Alternately, chop the garlic and red pepper first and then mash all ingredients together with a fork instead of blending.

This is my cross between hummus and an Italian-style pepper spread or dip. It is lighter than both, but just as flavorful.

Lentil Sprouts (raw and vegan)

Place 1 c. lentils in a large jar and rinse with water. Cover with fresh water and leave overnight in a cool, dark place. In the morning, rinse the lentils again and drain. Place a cheesecloth over the jar and secure it with a rubber band. Place the jar with the top facing down at a diagonal, allowing water to drain out while air circulates. Cover jar with a clean cloth to keep the light out. Leave it in this position for 1–2 days, rinsing and draining lentils every 6—8 hours. Sprouts are ready when their "tails" are about 1/4 inch long. Remove them from the jar, rinse once more, and spread on a paper towel to dry for an hour or so.

ODE TO A LENTIL

A while back my friend Jessy and I spent an evening talking about one of our great unsung heroes, the inexpensive yet highly nutritious lentil. (Now you know how I spend my Friday nights.) Jessy is a glowing vegan raw foodist while I am beer-swilling, unapologetic carnivore, yet both of us can come together in appreciation for this culinary heavy-hitter; few foods are as versatile and easy to prepare, which makes them a useful food for just about everyone. Moreover they are absurdly cheap, cheap, cheap, even the organic ones, and easy to find in several varieties at even the most depressing suburban supermarket.

Lentils are one of the longest-standing cultivated plants known. According to acclaimed naturopath and nutrition writer Dr. Michael Murray, lentil seeds have been discovered at Near and Middle East sites dating back as far as 6000 BC and have been a continuous agricultural staple ever since. Today, they remain an important protein source throughout the world especially in developing areas where meat protein is too expensive for daily consumption or where religious practice forbids it from time to time. Yet for some odd reason, they are not a mainstay of the Standard American Diet; they show up periodically in a "soup of the day" or as part of vegetarian home cooking, but like other legumes they are used more as an occasional specialty ingredient. Perhaps, in a food culture that honors meat as the linchpin of the meal with everything else being planned around it, there's just no obvious place for the humble lentil except as a "meat substitute." Epithet.

What many Americans-- especially us carnivores-- fail to realize is that lentils pack a lot of nutritional benefits that meats do not, and at a fraction of the cost. In addition to being an excellent source of protein (most of you knew that already), lentils are also rich in cholesterol-lowering, blood-sugar-balancing fiber; in fact, cooked lentils contain as much fiber per gram as prunes and even more than apples! And unlike protein foods from animal sources, lentils contain almost no fat-- making them an excellent dietary choice for anyone worried about controlling their intake of bad fats such as oxidized saturated fats. Lentils also contain essential minerals such as phosphorus, iron, potassium, and magnesium and, when eaten soaked or sprouted, may even be a good source of folic acid.

All this aside, of course, lentils are delicious and easy to prepare in a variety of ways. Below, I've provided some tips for buying and using lentils:

• Lentils can be eaten sprouted (raw), soaked overnight and lightly cooked, cooked longer for soups, stews, and Indian-type dahl dishes, even cooked and mashed to make "burgers," and even ground into flour.

• Brown, green, and "French" lentils are the most commonly found varieties in American supermarkets, but black, yellow, red, and orange varieties are also available and may be sold whole or split. The smaller types, especially red and orange ones, are excellent for soup.

• Buy your lentils dry; they cook quickly enough that there's no real advantage to buying canned ones, plus the canned ones may contain funky additives and residues (residues from can manufacturing will not be included on ingredients labels) and may also have a gummy consistency.

• Look for stores that sell dried lentils in bulk. Buying in bulk is better for the environment because it saves packaging, what's more it saves you the cost of paying for packaging and you can get exactly as much as you want. Generally, stores with quick turnover will stock a fresher product.

• Store lentils in a cool, dry, airtight container. My own personal favorite container is the clean, de-labelled, would-have-otherwise-been-recycled glass jar; these protect your lentils from critters and allow you to see inside. When the jar is empty, you may even be able to take it directly to the bulk department at your favorite health food store and fill it on the spot, no plastic bags needed!

• Dry lentils will keep in an airtight container for 6 months.

• Rinse lentils well before using and pick out any stones or other debris.

• It's not necessary to soak lentils the same way you should soak other legumes, however, soaking them will speed up cooking time. Lentils make a particularly tasty salad when simply soaked overnight and then steamed for 5–10 minutes and marinated in lemon juice, olive oil, paprika, and chopped parsley.

• It's almost impossible to over-salt lentils; in fact, lentils simply cooked in well-salted water make a perfectly tasty dish, especially when accompanied with hot sauce.

• According to Dr. Jeffrey Bland, 6 cups of raw sprouted lentils contain 50 grams of protein-- enough to meet an adult's protein needs for an entire day. Sprouted lentils make a great addition to raw salads, smoothies, dehydrated crackers, and breads. They also contain phytonutrients not available in cooked lentils.

• If you make too much of your favorite cooked lentil dish, pop the leftovers in the freezer; lentils actually retain their shape and taste quite well when frozen.