Green Lentil Patties with Spicy Green Spread

I didn't actually end up eating both of these. I went overboard with the spread so I was pretty full. If you anticipate liking the spread, consider increasing the recipe by 50-100%; I'm not sure I'll have enough to cover all the patties I made.

These were damn good, but next time I might cut down on the breadcrumbs a tad and substitute some wheat gluten. If you have a food processor (I don't), there's nothing to worry about. Also, I'm running low on spices so instead of using cumin and thyme or something I used garam masala, paprika, and coriander. Worked fine. The recipe for the patties is adapted from Isa's Olive Lentil Burgers.

makes 4-6 patties

Patties

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 c. green lentils, uncooked

1 small yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 handfuls shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and diced

1 c. breadcrumbs

2 Tbsp. oil

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

1/2 tsp. garam masala

1/2 tsp. paprika

1/4 tsp. coriander

ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

1. Cook lentils. Drain and set aside.

2. Fry the onions in a pan for a few minutes. Add the garlic, then a minute later throw in the mushrooms. Cook for another several minutes, then set aside.

3. Preheat the oven to 350F.

4. In a mixing bowl, combine the lentils, contents of the pan, and everything else besides 1/2 c. of the breadcrumbs. Mash for a few minutes until the mixture begins to coalesce.

5. Add in the remaining breadcrumbs (or wheat gluten if you're trying that) and knead until a dough forms.

6. Apportion the dough into between 4 and 6 patties, depending on how fat you want them.

7. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the patties on it. Bake for 12-15 minutes, then flip and bake on the other side for approximately the same amount of time.

Spread

INGREDIENTS:

2 c. shelled edamame

1 jalapeno, chopped

6 sun-dried red tomatoes

1/3 c. pine nuts

4 Tbsp. oil

3/4 c. water
juice of 1/4 lemon
1/4 tsp. lemon zest

DIRECTIONS:

1. Cook the edamame in a pan over medium heat for a couple minutes. Add the jalapeno, and after another couple minutes add the pine nuts. Pine nuts burn easily, but they shouldn't be too bad in there with other things. Cook until you can smell the pine nuts or until you catch a sight of some browning. Remove from the heat.

2. Place the sun-dried tomatoes, water, oil, and contents of pan in a blender. (Secret: I used 1 Tbsp. peanut oil. Magic.) Puree until relatively consistent.

Done! There is one major cost, though...

For those who read to the end, here's a special treat. I figure I'll start posting cool non-food links. I had never heard of Charles Cohen, Jeff Cain, or this album until the other day, but it has got to be one of the coolest things from 1981. I wasn't even alive!