Anytime Lentil Stew - $$

I call this "anytime" stew for a couple reasons. For one, your can eat it as a snack, for lunch or dinner. Another is that the ingredients are not seasonal, (unless you are an overachiever and can your own tomatoes and grow kale) so you can make it anytime of the year. It looks like a bowl of mush at first but this dish is packed with flavor from the tomatoes, garlic and sautéed kale. 

Before I started eating clean, I had never made lentils (and practically never heard of them) but now they are my go to when I'm craving a meatless meal or snack. You can make a batch of plain lentils and keep it for at least a week. Sure, lentils are pretty dull by themselves but similar to rice, when you add just a few simple ingredients they can become quite tasty. Another thing to note about this dish is it's packed with protein. The lentils alone have 10 grams!

Price: On the price scale this ranks 2 out of 4. You can find a great deal on lentils at Trader Joe's - they are just $1.49 a bag! If you go all organic, of course the $$ can add up quickly but this is an easy dish to do on a budget as well.

Anytime Lentil Stew Recipe

Serves 2-3

1 quart Vegetable Broth (organic or homemade if possible)

½ cup Green Lentils

½ cup Red Lentils

1 6oz can Stewed Tomatoes (organic if possible)

4 cups Kale

1 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 Clove Garlic, minced

Instructions:

In a large pot pour broth, and lentils. Cover and bring to a rapid boil. Once boiling, turn heat down to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes. While cooking lentils, in medium to large frying pan, add olive oil, kale and garlic. Turn to medium heat and stir frequently until kale has shriveled. When lentils are done, strain and put back into the original pot. Add stewed tomatoes, kale and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer on low for 5 minutes to meld the flavors.