Ingredients:
- 2 cups brown or green lentils, rinsed
- 1 small head cauliflower, broken into florets
- 1 small bunch scallions chopped
- 1 small bunch cilantro, rinsed
- 1 lime
- 1 pound extra-firm tofu, chopped into cubes
- 1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded
- salt to taste
- olive oil – 5-6 Tbsp divided
Method:
Spread cauliflower florets and tofu cubes on a baking sheet, drizzle with 3-4 Tbsp olive oil. bake at 400 F for 30 minutes. Meanwhile bring 3 cups water to boil, add in rinsed lentils, bring to rolling boil on high heat, then lower heat to medium-low, simmer lentils until cooked, about 15-20 minutes. While lentils are cooking, chop scallions and blend cilantro, jalapeno and lime juice (with a pinch of salt) in a blender or food processor. Transfer to a bowl and add in about 2 Tbsp olive oil and mix well.
Mix the cooked lentils (either warm or cooled) with roasted cauliflower and tofu in a large bowl, add in chopped scallions, salt to taste, cilantro pesto to taste and mix well. Serve warm or cool.
You could make this dish ahead of time by roasting the cauliflower and tofu on a weekend, making pesto ahead of time, and soaking lentils overnight, which reduces cooking time (and cooking liquid) by half.
You can serve this as a main dish with bread or rice, or as a filling for wraps or pita bread, feel free to use a spread such as hummus or tzatziki to go with it.