Lentils are consistently on the list of most nutritious foods, best foods for your gut, best foods for your heart over and over again. Since I found them pre-cooked and pre-packaged a few years ago, I have been in lentil heaven! Not that they are hard to make, but boy, does it simplify things when they are ready to serve. The Kumato toms from Trader Joes are your best bet when heirlooms are out of season – they have a ton of flavor. And salting the tomatoes after dicing them will move along the draining. Be sure to really TASTE this salad at the point of adding salt and pepper. Some tunas are a bit brinier than others and there is some sodium in the pre-packaged lentils, so you’ll need to use your chef-ie skills here (ie. add a little at a time – while tasting at each interval).
Ingredients
Pre-cooked black or red lentils, 1 2/3 cups
Teardrop or Kumato Tomatoes, 2 cups diced, drained
Fresh Basil, ~ 1 cup, roughly chopped
Garlic, 2 Tbsps. Minced
White or Cannellini Beans, 1 can, unrinsed
Haloumi Cheese, One package,cut in 1/3” slabs
Yellow Onion, Sliced in ¾” rounds
Tuna in Olive Oil, 1 ½ cans or ~ 8 ounces, broken up, partially drained
Olive Oil, 2 Tbsps. + some for grilling
Salt and Pepper
Please buy organic whenever possible!
Preparation
Combine the lentils, chopped tomatoes, garlic, basil and tuna and toss gently with the olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside – do not refrigerate immediately.
Prep the grill to about 375 F – make sure the slats are nice and clean! Lightly oil the slabs and rounds of the haloumi cheese and sliced onions. Place them on the grill and close the lid. Grill for four minutes – do not worry about the cheese melting – it won’t, I promise! Flip the cheese and onions and grill for another 2-3 minutes. Remove from grill – best tool here is a fish spatula – and roughly chop up the grilled onions.
Assemble the salad. Either on individual plates or on a platter, pile on the lentil mixture, top with chopped grilled onions and place the sliced grilled cheese alongside. Serve and enjoy!