Green and Red Lentil Enchiladas, Chickpea Strawberry Mango Salad

First of all:
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY 5th to Jason & Morgan!

Jason, Kinley and Morgan
August 2010 — Island Park, ID

Now, on to this post. I really liked the quesadilla and sauce recipe I posted earlier, so decided to check out the cookbook from our library and see if there were any more recipes that sounded good. These enchiladas were fast and easy. The green enchilada sauce made these spicy enough for Ian and I, even without the jalapeño. Scott would have liked more spicy.

Green and Red Lentil Enchiladas
1/4 c. chopped onions
2 T. chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped (optional)
1 c. red lentils, rinsed
3 c. of water or vegetable broth, or combination of the two
8-10 corn tortillas
30 oz. green enchilada sauce
1 can sliced olives
grated cheese
sour cream
salsa
chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 350. Bring water or broth, and one-third of enchilada sauce, to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add lentils, onion and jalepeno and cook until lentils approximately 15-20 minutes. Liquid should be absorbed completely and lentils should be tender. Stir in chopped cilantro and set aside.
Meanwhile, wrap 8-10 corn tortillas in damp paper towels and microwave for approximately 30 seconds to soften. Pour another cup of green enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 13×9 baking dish. Put several spoonfuls of the lentil mixture into each corn tortilla and roll, placing the tortilla seamside down in the prepared pan. Repeat until your pan is full and your lentils are gone. Pour remaining cup of green enchilada sauce over rolled tortillas, and top with cheese of your liking, (or grated carrots) and sliced olives. Bake enchiladas for 20-25 minutes. Top with sour cream, salsa and cilantro, if desired.

This was the first recipe I tried in this cookbook. It was divine. Scott was sold by the crunchy nuts, and Ian loved the fruit. I think it will be especially good in the summer, but loved it so much it's made it onto our menu plan two times this winter. The dressing makes this sweet salad even sweeter. The change Scott wanted to make was the beans, as he's not a fan of chickpeas/garbonzo beans. I decided to try the white beans I've cooked up from our food storage/dry pack canning. I usually do a crock pot full of each of the black, pinto and white beans we store, cook and freeze into "can" quantities. (I've included more info on white beans at the bottom of this post. ) Finally, I'd like to try the Pumpkin Spice—Roasted Chickpeas, but haven't yet. I tend to just do the things everyone will eat, and pumpkin (along with chickpeas) would get a "no" rating by Scott.

Chickpea Strawberry Mango Salad
8 cups romaine lettuce, washed, dried and torn into bite-sized pieces
1 batch Pumpkin Spice–Roasted Chickpeas (recipe below) 
or 1 14-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 mango, peeled and cut into chunks
2 c. strawberries, washed and sliced
1⁄2 c. dried cranberries
1⁄2 c. roasted almonds, roughly chopped
1⁄4 c. fresh mint, chopped
1 batch Cinnamon Vinaigrette  (recipe below) 

Place lettuce in individual serving dishes and top with 1⁄4 of the chickpeas, mango chunks, strawberry slices, cranberries, almonds and mint. Dress with Cinnamon Vinaigrette.

Cinnamon Vinaigrette
1 t. Dijon mustard
3 T. apple cider vinegar
3 T. lemon juice
1/3 c. agave nectar or pure maple syrup
1 t. cinnamon
½ t. ground ginger
½ t. salt
¼ c. canola oil
Whisk together all ingredients except oil in a medium bowl. Slowly add oil while whisking, until dressing has emulsified. Serve immediately or store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Makes 1 cup.

Pumpkin Spice Roasted Chickpeas
1 can of chickpeas, rinsed, drained and patted dry
2 T. maple syrup
1 t. canola oil (or oil of your choice)
1 t. apple cider vinegar
1/8 t. salt
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. ginger
3/4 t. cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350.  Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl until evenly coated.
Spread chickpeas on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
Bake for 25 minutes.  Stir chickpeas every ten minutes to ensure even crisping.


by Dee, wife of Barbara's son Scott
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Information on white beans from this post.

Cannellini, Great Northern and Navy are three popular types of white beans. What's the difference between them?

Cannellini beans are large and have that traditional kidney shape. With a slightly nutty taste and mild earthiness, they have a relatively thin skin and tender, creamy flesh. They hold their shape well and are one of the best white beans for salads and ragouts.

Great Northern beans are smaller than cannellinis and and suitable for any number of uses: salads, soups, stews, ragouts, purees. Their texture is slightly grainy, with a nutty, dense flavor. Popular in North America, Great Northerns look like white baby lima beans.

Navy beans are small and oval and cook relatively quickly (which, as Aliza Green notes in The Bean Bible, has made them popular with commercial baked bean manufacturers). Known as Boston beans, the white coco, pea beans or alubias chicas, Navy beans are perfect for dishes that don't need the full bean shape to shine: purees, soups, stews and baked beans.

It's great to know the differences between the three and it's worth paying more attention to them when you're using dried beans. Truthfully though, when we use canned white beans, we use these three almost interchangeably.

Recipe: Italian Cabbage And White Bean Soup
Recipe: Squid, White Bean And Arugula Salad
Recipe: Tuscan White Bean Stew 

by Dee, wife of Barbara's son Scott