beans and rice

The New York Times had an article Sunday in which Mark Bittman wrote about three recipes that had numerous virtues, one of which he touted was that "almost without exception your ancestors relied on one of these three recipes." Well, I don't know about all your ancestors, but I can tell you I never had brown rice and lentils at either of my grandmother's houses. Nevertheless, if you can call me an ancestor, then you can feel like this is a traditional family recipe.

Just as Mark says, it is easy, nutritious and it works. He says to use water, but I splurge and use Chicken Broth. It is worth it.

2 Tbls olive oil

1 box of Trader Joe's Chicken Broth(4 cups)

2 cups lentils

1 cup brown rice

1 cup chopped celery

1 cup chopped carrots

1 onion

fresh garlic to taste

salt and pepper(plus cumin or any other spice you like)

4 bay leaves

cook the vegetables in the oil. Add the broth, lentils,rice and spices, bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 20 minutes or until all liquid is gone.

Fluff with a fork.

Add chopped parsley(as much as you want), sprinkle with chopped scallions and crumbled feta cheese. (can add fresh tomatoes here). Correct seasonings. Serve!

Alternative: Substitute a red bell pepper for the celery and carrot and canned chopped tomatoes for 1 cup of liquid.