Harissa Lentils with Roasted Vegetables and Feta

Harissa Lentils with Roasted Vegetables and Feta

This is just the sort of winter salad I love to cook.  A base of hearty spiced lentils, layered with charred roasted vegetables, scented with garlic and topped with salty feta and crunchy cashews. This combination of flavours and textures makes for a winning mid-week meal for me.

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Harissa Lentils with Roasted Vegetables & Feta

Option to be made vegan

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time45 mins

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Servings: 4 people

Ingredients

• 140 g lentils I used dark speckled
• 120 g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 aubergine medium
• 1 courgette medium
• 1 red onion medium
• 1 red pepper medium
• 2-3 tsp rose harissa I used Belazu
• 30 g raw cashews, roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic do not peel
• 100 g fresh spinach washed and left slightly damp
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 tsp pomegranate molasses
• Olive oil
• 90 g feta cheese crumble, made from vegetable rennet
• a handful of parsley & mint roughly chopped

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 200C fan/gas 7.
• Place the cashews on a baking tray and roast in the oven for 3-5 minutes or until golden. Set to one side.
• Rinse the lentils in cold water. Place in a saucepan and cook according to the packets instructions. Drain and set to one side.
• Cut the courgette and aubergine into batons. Peel and cut the onion into wedges and the pepper into large dice.
• Place the onion, pepper, aubergine, garlic cloves and courgette onto a baking tray, season and drizzle with a little olive oil and cook for 20 minutes or until nicely roasted.
• Heat a frying pan with a drizzle of oil, add the spinach. Stir and place a lid on the pan for a couple of minutes to wilt. add the lentils to heat through. Now add the cherry tomatoes, harissa, lemon juice and pomegranate molasses. Continue to cook for 2-3 minutes, check the seasoning. You may also need to add a little more oil.
• Remove the vegetables from the oven. Peel away the skin from the garlic cloves and mash with a fork. Stir it through the vegetables.
• Place the lentils on a large plate. Tip the vegetables on the top and fold through the lentils. Sprinkle on the cashews, feta, mint and parsley. Serve

Tips

• This dish is also fantastic served with lots of smaller mezze type dishes or just with flat bread.
• If you’re pushed for time, you can buy cooked lentils.  For this recipe you’ll need 280g.
• If you prefer a vegan version, switch the feta for a tahini sauce; mix 1 1/2 Tbls tahini in a bowl, add a good squeeze of lemon juice and 1-2 Tbls boiling water, stir to form a smooth sauce.  Drizzle on the finished dish.