Lentils go Midwest

Posted by Kathryn @ 11:12 AM

So this past weekend I wanted to do a BBQ because the weather was so nice. This Texan cannot resist the opportunity to sear meat on a grill, but in this instance many of my guests followed a vegetarian diet, avoided milk products, or had other dietary restrictions. So I decided to change up the traditional Chicago slider to fit their needs a bit better! So here comes the lentil slider. It looks suspiciously like a falafel on a small bun, but it has a differently delicious texture/flavor combo.

Zest and Juice of one lemon
6 scallions chopped
3/4 of a package of lentils cooked through
2/3 of a baguette or other bread (check the ingredients for milk products or eggs) whole wheat works nicely
Salt
Ground Pepper
1/4 cup mint
1/4 cup parsley
1-2 tsp cumin
2 tsp of red pepper flakes
1 tsp ground coriander seed
2 tsp of cornstarch in 2 tb of water or an egg
3 TB olive oil

Blitz the bread in a food processor. Add the additional ingredients and blend to a paste (don't loose all of the lentil texture, but if you are using cornstarch rather than egg it will need to be more pureed so that the patties don't fall apart. Heat a skillet with additional olive oil and roll1-2 tb quantities of the puree into balls. Fry each patty until golden brown on both sides. Place on a tiny roll and serve with tahini or yogurt with mint and lemon zest as toppings.

The patties are also excellent on a salad. I know it is CSA time so many people are trying to come up with new ways to spice up lettuce and this is a great one!