Mujadara

• 1 cup lentils

Put the lentils in a pan with enough cold water to cover them by an inch or two. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to simmer and cook for about 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.

• 3 Tb olive oil
• 3 medium onions, peeled, halved and sliced thin

While you prepare and cook the lentils, in a separate soup pot or dutch oven, sprinkle the onions with a little salt and let them cook in the olive oil over medium heat, stirring every once in a while, until they are brown, caramelized and a bit crispy, about 20 minutes or so. Remove the onions and save them for later.

• 2 Tb olive oil
• 2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper
• ½ tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• salt and pepper
• 1 cup basmati rice
• 3 cups of water

In the pot that you cooked the onions in, heat the remaining olive oil, add the cumin seeds and toast them, while stirring for a minute or two. Add the rice and the other spices and stir to evenly distribute everything. Add the reserved lentils and the 3 cups of water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a low simmer and cook covered for about 30 minutes.

For the dressing, whisk together:

• ¼ cup olive oil
• juice of 1 ½ lemons
• 1 TB dried mint or 1/3 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
• salt and pepper

Top each serving of the finished Mujadara with a hefty dollop of the caramelized onions and drizzle with the lemon dressing.

Optional: serve over a simple green salad.