Multi-Cultural Lentil Salad

So, what do you get when you mix coconut oil from the tropics, spices from the middle east, French lentils and Italian balsamic vinegar? This yummy salad of course!  I woke up this morning with a craving for a lentil salad. Weird, I know, but true! I did as I always do when I want to cook something, I scanned the internet for recipes to see what I could make with the ingredients I had on hand., and there wasn't one. So, I winged it, and made my own. The result is an awesome marriage of cultures, that can be enjoyed warm, or eaten cold.

 Feel free to substitute the greens , I had beet greens sitting on the counter from some beets I had just roasted, they were a last minute addition, but a very tasty one, I wouldn't  leave them out!

Multi-Cultural Lentil Salad

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 large carrot, diced

1 med onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

½ tsp cumin seeds

½ tsp coriander seeds (crush both seeds with a mortar and pestle, or a spice grinder, or use powder in a pinch!)

1 cup shredded beet greens (you could substitute any green, like kale, chard, spinach, collards)

2 cups cooked French lentils

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar (Ideally a nice thick already reduced one, to give a nice deep flavour)

Salt to taste

Heat the coconut oil in a large pan (cast is always preferable. Add your onions and carrots, garlic, and the crushed seeds or powders. Cook over medium heat  till veggies are starting to brown and soften, and spices are fragrant.

Add the beet greens and saute til wilted. Add pre-cooked lentils and balsamic, and stir to combine. Add salt to taste. Heat thru if serving warm, or remove from pan and chill for a cold salad.