Lunch Box Chronicles Day Thirty: Vegetarian Day 3:Lentils Lentils Lentils

I am obsessed with food, recipes to be exact. I used to drive around, thinking about national and world events, thinking perhaps who might be the next Supreme Court Justice (Kagan, who?). I even asserted my views to our lovely Senators. I might as well have been saying "waa, waaa, waaa, waa, waa." Then there was the law practice. On my way to court, I was formulating every constitutional argument I could muster. "Your honor, I respectfully submit that my client's 4th, 5th, and 14th Amendment Rights were violated." And, in fact, they had been. Ultimately, I might just say, "and in the interest of fairness and justice." "waa, waa, waaa, waa"

Now, instead of wrestling with constitutional arguments, I think about such things as "Oooh, I wonder how cooked lentils, walnuts, and onions would be blended together?" "MMM, that might be a good combination, but needs something more."

Where have I gone? I have gone home. I am in my comfort zone (except when I am negotiating with supermarket chains and large distributors for my budding business). I love feeding my kids and my husband, and feeding them well.

This is so tangible, so accessible, so real. Yes, I care about the Supreme Court nominees and some poor individual who has been unfairly treated, but the reality is that I have little control over those worlds.

So here I am controlling every slice, chop, mix, and blend. And in my control today, a recipe formulated on one of those car rides....quite inexact (I apologize) , but quite good.

Ingredients: One Spelt Right Pizza Dough fully thawed and risen. Lentils, walnuts, onions, spinach (I used frozen), one red pepper, 1 cup brown rice, fresh garlic, salt and pepper to taste. A smidge of EVOO just for browning the rice and the lentils:

Instructions: Prepare rice according to bag (I saute the rice first in a little EVOO with garlic and then add the water). Prepare lentils according to bag (you want these to be slightly firm, but fully cooked). Put 1/2 onion in food processor, add about 1 cup walnuts (inexact), add some rice (this is where the precision falls apart), add a cut up red pepper, add some brown rice, add in a few garlic gloves, the spinach (it should be damp), salt and pepper. Blend all together. YUMMM. This stuff is UGLY, but tastes so good.

We ate this two ways: One, we added a few bread crumbs made from Spelt Right bagels, and made paddies and cooked them up on the stove top with a little EVOO. The other is to take the mixture and make a fitaya. Bake at 400 until golden brown. (Check out the photos)

COMPLETELY VEGAN, fully satisfying. Better than last night's meal,

And, if I were the judge, I would say "Attorney George, you have made your case."
And my kids, they just say, "hey this isn't that bad."

Lunch Box Chronicles: Day Twenty (Dinner Fare)

We did a 5 hour one way trip (with a quick overnight) with two travel weary children, a quiet Grandma, and car packed with luggage and Spelt Right bagels.

We journeyed to Bennington, Vermont in order to attend a celebration to top all others honoring our friends the Goodriches, who lost their son, Peter, in 9/11, and took this horrific event as an opportunity to change the world working toward peace. They are inspiring beyond words as they work to educate the world on the roots of misunderstanding and hatred and personally "adopt" children from Afghanistan in an effort to create a peaceful world. http://www.goodrichfoundation.org/ (If you are able, this organization is worth a donation. Real people! Real results!)

I am one of the lucky beneficiaries of the Goodriches' passion and compassion long before the tragic events of 9/11 revealed to the world Don and Sal's beauty and benevolence. They were my guardian angels who encouraged me to go to college and then to law school. With my own parents very unfamiliar with the college application process, Don and Sally guided me along as they drove me through New England, with their young sons Peter and Foster in tow, visiting college after college, until I landed at Bates, where Peter also eventually attended. Bates now is also a beneficiary of their good works.

Arrived home Sunday with no plan for dinner, an unthawed turkey, little ambition, and a hungry family. Although I was quite touched by the weekend, I was quite exhausted by the trip and dinner was not what I would have chosen as my first deed. But, the kids were hungry....

Thank goodness I learned how to sweat vegetables the other day.

Dinner: Brown rice (first sauteed the rice with garlic and EVOO and then added the water), eggplant, zucchini, and mushrooms (sweated -see earlier post for details on "how to", and then topped with EVOO mixed with garlic and salt paste), potatoes diced into small cubes and roasted in oven with EVOO, salt and pepper, homemade yogurt from Live Well Cafe in Kennebunk, salad made with chopped tomatoes, a rinsed can of organic garbanzo beans, chopped parsley, mint (optiona;), fresh lemon, EVOO, salt and pepper to taste. Fried eggs.

Lots of EVOO today.

See picture for way to serve. It worked, family went to bed satisfied. My plans tomorrow? Grocery shopping. My creativity for near empty cupboards and fridge is waning.