Cherry, Goat's Cheese and Lentil Salad
- Author: Rachel Page
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Salads
- Method: Microwave
- Cuisine: Western
- 500g (17½ oz) cooked green lentils - I used 2 tins, drained and rinsed
- 4 handfuls baby spinach, stems trimmed
- 85g (3oz) walnut halves
- 210g (7½ oz) fresh cherries, pitted
- 120ml (½ cup) extra virgin olive oil
- 60ml (¼ cup) white wine vinegar
- salt and pepper
- a few basil leaves
- a bit of soft goat's cheese, roughly crumbled
- Put the lentils into a large, microwaveable bowl and warm them gently for a couple of minutes. Now toss the spinach leaves through the warm lentils until the leaves have wilted a bit. You may need to pop them back into the microwave for another minute if the lentils are not warm enough.
- Now add most of the walnuts to the salad.
- Make the cherry vinaigrette by combining one-third of the cherries, the olive oil, white wine vinegar and ¼ teaspoon of salt and blending until smooth. I use a stick blender for this but you could also use a small jug blender. Add a generous splash of dressing to the salad.
- Tear some of the remaining cherries in half and stir most of them into the lentils. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
- Turn the salad out onto a platter and finish with the last of the cherries and walnuts, the basil and the goat's cheese. Drizzle with a little more dressing and serve the rest of it on the side.
Keywords: summer, healthy