Green apple & kale salad

For ➍
3 cups ribbed & chopped kale or borecole
handful of chopped parsley
1 cup cooked black lentils
1 green apple, diced
1/2 English cucumber, diced
½ cup toasted pumpkin seeds
1 cup shaved Parmigiano, or feta or goat cheese
dressing
one clove garlic
1 tbs honey
1 tbs Dijon mustard
juice of 1 lemon
¼ cup pumpkin seed oil or extra virgin olive oil
salt &pepper

In a large salad bowl, combine the kale, parsley, lentils, apples, cucumber, pepitas and parmesan.
For the dressing, blitz everything in a food processor or blender, with salt and pepper to taste, until the garlic is smooth.
Pour the dressing on the salad and toss well to coat. Garnish with more cheese if you wish. The salad will keep in the fridge for a full day and slowly loose it's crunch from there.

Salmon with lentils & sweet potato salad & orange dressing

For ➍
4 salmon fillets, skinless, 500 g
1 ts chilli powder
1 ts salt
salad:
160 dry lentils, boiled, drained
400 g sweet potatoes, in cubes of 2x2cm
1 red chili pepper, finely chopped
1 tbs olive oil
80 g rucola
150 g feta
salt
orange dressing:
3 tbs butter
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 orange, grated zest & juice
2 tbs apple vinegar

Prepare salad.
Preheat oven to 200 ° C. Place sweet potato cubes on baking tray. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and chili pepper. Bake 20 m.
Mix sweet potatoes with the lentils, rucola and feta in a large bowl.
Prepare orange dressing:
Melt butter, and stir until golden brown. Grate zest of ½ orange and add the juice of the whole orange. Add vinegar and remove pan from the heat.
Prepare salmon. Rub the salmon with chili and salt. Bake 6-7 m on one side over medium heat 1- m on the other side.
Serve the salmon with lentil salad and orange dressing.

Coniglio al Vesuvio (Vesuvius rabbit stew)

For ➍
300 g boneless rabbit
37,5 cl red wine
50 g plain flour, seasoned with salt & freshly ground black pepper
3 tbs olive oil
1 large onion, thickly sliced
4 celery stalks, thickly sliced
2 large carrots, cut into chunks
½ fresh chili pepper, finely chopped
200 g tinned green lentils
400 g Italian tinned plum tomatoes
50 g finely chopped parsley
25 cl water
salt & freshly ground black pepper

Place the rabbit in a bowl, cover with the red wine. Leave to marinate for 12 h.
Remove the rabbit from the marinade and pat dry. Dredge in seasoned flour and set aside.
Heat a large frying pan, add the olive oil and gently fry the onion, celery and carrots. Stir in the chili. Add the rabbit pieces and fry for 10 m, until golden brown. Add the lentils, tomatoes and parsley and season to taste. Add 2 glasses of water and simmer for 2 h until the sauce has reduced and thickened, adding a little more water if necessary.
Serve with the accompanying pea risotto.

Fennel-scented salmon with lentil & spinach salad

For ➋
100 g French green lentils, rinsed & debris removed
50 cl water
1 bay leaf
1½ tbs sherry wine vinegar
1 ts Dijon mustard
½ ts plus ⅛ ts sea salt, divided
4 tbs extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1½ tbs minced shallot
¼ cup chopped Italian parsley
2 [wild Alaskan] salmon fillets (150 g each)
⅛ ts pepper
⅛ ts ground fennel seed (or fennel pollen, if available)
2 handfuls baby spinach
6 cornichons, for garnish

Preheat oven to 200°C.
Prepare lentil salad. Combine lentils, water, and bay leaf in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer, covered, for about 20 m, until lentils are tender. Drain and discard bay leaf. 
While lentils are cooking, make the dressing.
Stir together sherry wine vinegar, mustard, and ½ ts salt in a small bowl. Gradually add 3 ½ tbs olive oil, whisking constantly, until emulsified. While lentils are still hot, add shallot, parsley, and ¾ of the dressing, and toss to combine. Keep warm until ready to serve.
Cook salmon. Wipe salmon dry with a paper towel. Brush an ovenproof baking dish with a little of the remaining olive oil, and set salmon fillet inside, skin side down. Brush salmon with the remaining olive oil, then sprinkle with salt, pepper, and fennel seed. Bake until just cooked through, about 20 m.
To serve, divide spinach between 2 plates. Top each with lentil salad and a fillet of salmon. Drizzle the remaining dressing on the spinach and garnish with the cornichons.

Kirmizi mercimek corbasi (Turkish red lentil soup)

For ➍
200 g red lentils, washed & drained*
1 onion, chopped
1 small carrot, chopped
1 tbs crushed tomato, in can
1 ts red pepper paste
1½ cubes (beef) stock
60 cl water
1 tbs butter, 1 tbs red pepper, 1 tbs cayenne pepper**

Place all the main ingredients in a medium-sized pot. Cook for about 20 ms on medium-low heat. Then mix thoroughly using a blender. If necessary (too thick), add more hot water. Pour into soup bowls using a ladle.

Melt the butter in a small pan and add in the peppers**. When it starts bubbling, pour over the soup.

Serve the soup while still hot with fresh flat bread. Add a few drops of fresh lemon juice to taste.

*It’s best to soak the lentils and make the stock the day before cooking. Ideally the lentils should be pre-soaked for 12 h, but if that is not possible, rinse them well under cold running water.
**Or use a mix of 3 tbs Turkish mint (nanne), 1 tbs red pepper (pulbiber), 2 ts tumeric (curcuma) (kunyit), a knife-point of cumin

Risotto con lenticchie e pancetta (risotto with lentils & pancetta)

For ➍-➏
400 g short grained rice
150 g drained boiled (or canned) lentils
½ medium onion, minced
1 clove garlic, chopped
200 g pancetta, diced
50 g unsalted butter
1 tbs olive oil
10 cl full bodied dry red wine, warmed
25 cl simmering broth
salt & pepper to taste
100 g freshly grated Parmigiano

Sauté the onion and the garlic in half the butter and the olive oil, in a saucepan. As soon as the garlic begins to color, remove and discard it, and then add the pancetta to the pan and continue to cook, stirring. After a couple of m, add the rice; cook for another 3-4 m, stirring, and then add the wine. When it has evaporated begin adding the broth, a ladle at a time, and cook, stirring.

After about 8 m add the cooked lentils to the rice and continue cooking, adding broth as it is absorbed, until the rice reaches the al dente stage. Check seasoning, stir the remaining butter into the risotto, and let it rest covered for 1 m.

Serve, dusted with grated cheese and freshly ground pepper, and more cheese for those who want it.

Read the risotto tip.