Lentil Salad with Feta and Mint
I love Greek food.  I love everything about Greece--the people, the history, the food, the charm and beauty...but I digress.  This flavorful recipe, which comes from the Seattle Post Intelligence.  They credit a cookbook called, "From Tapas to Mczc."  If you close your eyes while you eat it, you can almost imagine sitting in a restaurant after a morning of combing through the ruins at Delphi or Corinth or the Peloponnese. Serves 6.  May be prepared up to 6 hours in advance.
1 cup dried lentils 3 bay leaves 4 whole cloves garlic, peeled and bruised 2 cloves of minced garlic 1/4 tsp dried oregano 6 Tbsp red wine vinegar 6 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil	1/2 tsp ground cumin salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 small red onion, diced 1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and finely diced 3 Tbsp fresh chopped mint 6 ounces feta, crumbled 18-20 pitted kalmata olives, halved fresh mint sprigs

Rinse the lentils and place in a large saucepan with the bay leaves, the 4 bruised garlic cloves and the oregano.  Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the lentils are tender, 20-26 minutes.  Drain and cool

To make the vinaigrette, in a small bowl whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, 2 minced cloves garlic and the cumin.  Season with salt and pepper.

Toss the vinaigrette with the lentils, onion, red bell pepper, 1/2 tsp salt and pepper.  Let sit 20 minutes.  Season as needed with additional salt, pepper and vinegar.

To serve, toss the lentil salad with the chopped mint and place on a platter or in a serving bowl.  Garnish with crumbled feta, olives and mint sprigs.

Enjoy!

Happy eating!!

September 2006