In an effort to share more recipes, I’m just going to try to take pictures of what I eat at home, and share it with you guys. So this was lunch, I happened to have received some lovely lobster mushrooms from my friend Austin – and they are a lovely orange color. I also had peaches. So I went with an orange theme. It was all beginning to sound very Noma-esque, so I threw some flowers in there too. Try it out, or just enjoy the pretty picture. This serves two (as in, Mirra and I for lunch)
Lentils:
- 1 cup red lentils
- 1 cup white wine
- water
- salt
- olive oil
- 1/2 cup sungold tomatoes
- Spices from the mushroom component
Wash the lentils several times in cold water. Then cook the lentils in as much leftover wine as you have around, a large pinch of salt and water (a knuckle above the lentils). Bring them to a boil and then simmer for 15 minutes (skimming the scum off the top). Be careful as red lentils can overcook very easily. Sometimes you want this (for dal). But here, we are going for the texture of a whole lentil. When they are just past al dente, strain the water out and run cold water over the lentils. Strain the lentils again, and mix olive oil, halved sungold tomatoes , salt and the spices from the mushroom pan (see below).
Mushrooms
- 2-3 large lobster mushrooms
- olive oil to cover the bottom of frying pan
- pinch fenugreek seeds
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 clove garlic, smashed
With a damp paper towel, clean off any of the dirt from the lobster mushrooms. If they are really filthy, you can run them under cold water and scrub lightly. Once the mushrooms are clean, slice them into 1/2 cm slices. Heat the olive oil until just before smoking and add the mushroom slices to the pan. Don’t pile them on each other, only cook enough that it covers the bottom of the pan. Fry one side until golden brown, then flip, add the spices and garlic to the pan. Cook until the other side of the mushrooms are golden brown. Add the spice/olive oil mixture to the lentils.
To assemble:
- Lentils and Mushrooms
- Peaches
- flowers
You can assemble however you want, but key to the dish are sliced peaches. Their sweetness brings great balance to the dish. I also add arugala flowers and squash blossom to compliment the color scheme. And a little sea salt and olive oil.
