BELUGA LENTIL PERSIMMON & HERB SALAD

This is a great side dish, starter or stand alone meal to impress friends and family. A beautiful, flavour packed veggie alternative. Bitter and sweet it’s perfect for the holiday season and easy to make too!

I’ve used squash and persimmon for sweet, radicchio and watercress for bitter leaves and almonds for some added crunch. The slightly sweet dressing off sets the bitter radicchio and goes so well with earthy black lentils. Beluga or black lentils are my favourite for salads, they hold they’re shape really well and just taste delicious! If you can’t get hold of them puy lentils will work beautifully too.

The herbs I’ve used almost like salad leaves for extra flavour and fun times. You can mix up the herbs as you like, I had coriander and mint so that’s what I used but if you have some other favourite fresh herbs you’d like to use, feel free.  

So here’s my holiday recipe.. I hope you enjoy!

Beluga Lentil, Persimmon, Herb & Watercress salad

150g beluga lentils (black lentils)

3 bay leaves

1 small squash

1 heaped tbsp coconut oil

2 tbsp olive oil

30g coriander

20g picked mint

bunch watercress

½ radicchio

1 persimmon

50g toasted almonds, roughly chopped

Dressing

50ml red wine vinegar

150ml extra virgin olive oil

½ tbsp. maple syrup

pinch of salt and pepper

Heat oven to 200c. Wash your squash, cut into wedges, scoop out the seeds and cover with the coconut oil, season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes until browned and tender.

Rinse and cook your lentils in plenty of filtered water by bringing to the boil with bay leaves and turn down to a simmer for 20 minutes until cooked but still al dente. Adding a good pinch of salt towards the end of cooking.

Drain the lentils and add to large mixing bowl and drizzle with the olive oil while the lentils are still warm.

While the squash and lentils are cooking make your dressing. Simply place ingredients in a jar, shake well and set aside. This will make more than you need but it’s a great dressing to have in the fridge to add to pulses, grains or simple salads.

Once the squash is cooked and cool enough to handle, cut into cm cubes. I kept the skin on mine for extra nutrition and flavour. (It depends which squash you have if you’d like to do this!) Mix through the lentils. Roughly chop the coriander (including the stems) add to the lentils with the mint leaves. We’re using the herbs like a salad leaf here so it’s nice to keep it whole and use large cuts.

Tear the watercress and radicchio into bite size pieces, add into the salad. Very thinly slice the persimmon into half rounds. Add a few tablespoons of dressing to the lentils, mix through, taste for seasoning, add more dressing if necessary. Keep some nuts and persimmon for garnish and mix through the persimmon and chopped nuts.

Enjoy and happy holidays! :)