from the kitchen of Chef Oriana Van Buren
This recipe serves 6
Equipment Needed
1 – Fine-mesh Sieve
2 – Medium Pot
3 – Large Bowl
4 – Small Bowl
5 – Whisk
Salad
| Amount | Unit | Ingredients |
| 1 | cup | Dry lentils |
| 4 | cups | Water |
| 1 | Bay leaf | |
| 1 | medium | Cucumber, cut into 1/4 inch cubes |
| 1/2 | small | Red onion, thinly sliced |
| 1-1/2 | cups | Cherry tomatoes, halved |
| 1/2 | cup | Kalamata olives, halved |
| 1/2 | cup | Roasted red peppers, diced |
| 1/2 | cup | Crumbled feta cheese |
| 2 | tsp | Dried oregano |
| 2 | tbsp | Fresh mint, minced |
- Place lentils in a fine-mesh sieve and rinse well under cold water, removing any imperfect or bad lentils.
- Place lentils, water, and the bay leaf into a medium pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and allow to cook 18-25 minutes until lentils are tender but not mushy.
- Drain lentils, discard the bay leaf, and allow the lentils to cool in a large bowl in the fridge.
- Once the lentils are cooled, add the cucumber, red onion, cherry tomatoes, olives, roasted red peppers, feta cheese, oregano, and mint to the bowl and toss well until combined. Set aside.
For the Citrus Dressing
| Amount | Unit | Ingredients |
| 2 | tbsp | Freshly-squeezed orange juice |
| 2 | tbsp | Freshly-squeezed lemon juice |
| 1 | tbsp | Dijon mustard |
| 1 | tbsp | Honey or agave nectar |
| 1/4 | cup | Extra-virgin olive oil |
| Salt and pepper to taste |
- In a small bowl, whisk the orange juice, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, and honey/agave nectar until smooth. Slowly begin drizzling in olive oil until dressing is smooth. Season the dressing with salt and pepper to taste.
- Drizzle the citrus dressing over the salad and toss until evenly coated. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste if needed. Store the salad in a refrigerator until ready to serve. Enjoy!
“Anyone can cook, but you must be open to making mistakes. Mistakes are how we learn in the kitchen; each time you fail, you learn something new. Knowledge is power and practice makes perfect!”
Oriana Van Buren