Cupboard Challenge

This is a seriously GREAT recipe. It's obviously yummy, or I wouldn't be telling you to run off and make it! Not to mention super healthy AND hearty. But it's also impossibly easy for two reasons: 1. There is very little actual cooking involved, and 2. There's a good chance you already have all the ingredients you need! It was born one lazy weekend afternoon when my bestie and I were gearing up to order a pizza - neither of us had groceries and didn't feel like going out. Feeling just a little guilty about the prospect of eating pizza on a day that I went to Pilates, I tried to think of a last minute alternative that had the ease and simplicity of ordering in. Right before she called, I suddenly remembered I had some steamed lentils from Trader Joe's. We scurried into the kitchen and rummaged around the pantry to see what could accompany it. Next thing I know, she's triumphantly waving a can of tomatoes in my face, "Can you do anything with this?!?" YES. And the Cupboard Challenge was born.

The list of ingredients is VERY flexible: 

• 1 package of steamed lentils from Trader Joe's (if this is not on your list of regular groceries, add it! They are SO handy and you can throw 'em in anything!)
• 1 can of tomatoes (when buying canned toms, always make sure 'tomatoes' is the first listed ingredient)

...That's really it for the "musts", the rest is up to you - get creative! Here's what else I added:

• 1 sauteed onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Dried oregano
• Dried basil
• Chili flakes

Call me crazy, but I can't make any sort of soup or stew without sauteing an onion and some garlic as my base. As a result, these are things I always have on hand (I eat a lot of soup). Chop up the onion and throw into a big soup pot with some olive oil and a good sprinkle of salt and pepper...

Stir them up and cover on a medium heat for about 8 minutes until they're pretty translucent and soft...

Next up is the garlic. I used two huge cloves. Mince them up and toss 'em in!

Stir around and cook for about a minute before moving on to your toms. Any kind of peeled tom situation will work (peeled and crushed, peeled and whole, peeled and basil, etc.). Just whatever you prefer/have on hand! Pop the guy open and toss him in...

Give it a good mix and leave to warm through. If you're using toms of the "peeled and whole variety", you might want to crush them up a bit with the back of your spoon. Moving on to the lentils - These lentils are the hottest tip ever given to me. They are already completely cooked and you can do a whole lot with them, hot or cold! I usually make some sort of soup with them, but TJ's recommends you make a suuuper yummy dip by mixing them up with their jarred bruschetta and lots of feta cheese - YUM!

Here's what they look like in their little package...

I just toss the whole block into the soup and the heat from the tomatoes warms them through so they break up. And they miraculously keep their shape and don't get all mushy!

I helped it along with a few good stirs... Also, if you notice it's all a bit dry, you can throw in some chicken stock to keep it moist. Even water in a pinch (just be sure to taste for flavor and seasoning). This will only happen if your toms didn't come in a lot of liquid.

Taste for salt and pepper and then have a little fun! Rummage around your pantry and see what you've got. Mine only offered dried oregano, basil and chili flakes but it was yummy nonetheless! I also had some chives that I added for garnish. Parsley would also do wonderfully. In the past I've thrown in fresh spinach when I had it. Also Parmesan cheese. Any cheese would be amaze. Fresh basil would be good, too. If you like a lot of heat, maybe some Tabasco? Go crazy!

Mix it all up and serve!

Practically just as easy and WAY healthier than ordering a pizza! The little lentils have fiber to keep you full (and regulated, if ya know what I mean) and iron to keep you healthy! And you can whip it up in seconds!

xo,
The Ging Twins