Braised Winter Lentils

Ingredients

2 cups water
6 cloves garlic, peeled
1 medium onion, peeled
1 whole clove
2 cups dry USA lentils, rinsed
1 medium carrot, peeled and halved
1 stalk celery, halved
1 cup heavy cream
3 ounces mild goat cheese, crumbled
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 cup finely diced slab bacon, blanched and drained
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon salt

Directions

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add peeled garlic cloves and return to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, 15 to 20 minutes, or until garlic is tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife. Drain.

Plug onion with whole clove. In a 4-quart saucepan or pot, combine lentils, carrot, celery and onion. Add water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 to 25 minutes, or until lentils are tender. Drain, discard vegetables and set lentils aside.

In a food processor, combine the garlic, heavy cream and goat cheese. Process until smooth. Set aside.

Melt butter in a large, heavy skillet. Add bacon and cook until lightly browned. Remove all but 2 tablespoons fat from skillet and add lentils, garlic-cream and thyme. Simmer over low heat until lentils absorb cream mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Keywords: recipes with lentils, calories lentils, what are lentils?