The vegetarian project - day 5

I have found a new recipe I love!! Alex and I are eating dinner right now and he piped up "you should totally blog this" sorry no pictures since I'm eating it as I type.

From Allrecipes.com

• 1/2 cup dry lentils I had some red lentils left over from some jarred soup mix I made for Christmas so I used those
  
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained drained well!!!
  
• 2 tomatoes, chopped I used regular tomatoes, if I make it again in non-tomato season I'll use canned, they taste better right now
  
• 4 green onions, chopped Two green onions and a hand full of diced red onion. (I throw red onion in my lunch salads so I have a tupperware of it in the fridge)
  
• 2 minced hot green chile peppers Used canned peppers, also to go with the tomato comment might just use canned tomatoes with peppers
  
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped Don't like, didn't use
  
• 1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 lime, juiced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro Mom's allergic so I didn't grow up with cilantro, and don't really like it. I read in the comments that some people used mint so I used that instead.
  
• salt to taste
• onion powder
• garlic powder
• cumin
• crushed red peppers
• sliced black olives
• handful of spinach shredded
  
• a tiny amount of feta cheese (adds almost no calories bc of how little I used, but adds flavor)
  

Directions

1. Place lentils and water in a pot. Bring water to boil, reduce to simmer. Cook for 30 minutes or until tender.NOT thirty minutes!!! That is why we are eating at 8 pm, I cooked them for 30 min and they turned to mush and I had to start over. Mine took 10 min tops.
   
2. In a medium size mixing bowl combine lentils, chickpeas, tomatoes, green onions, green chilies, bell peppers, lime juice, olive oil, cilantro, and salt to taste. Toss well. Chill for 20 minutes. Serve chilled.

I served this over 2/3 C (all my other measuring cups are dirty) brown rice. It tastes kind of like salsa over rice, with the added creaminess of the garbanzo beans and the nice zing of the lime juice. For Alex I gave him more rice, next time I'll probably cook up some chicken or pork for him to go with it. I don't need him losing any more weight on me. :) With the salad and the rice it sits right around 300 calories.

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Since I posted my dinner, I figured I'd post my snack today too

1 serving fat free sugar free chocolate pudding made with fat free milk
5 frozen strawberries (no the exact number does NOT matter, that is just what I defrosted)
2 Thin Mint girl scout cookies
2 Tbs Cool Whip (I bought the off brand bc you got twice as much for half the price, they didn't have light though. Oh well it adds 25 cal/2Tbs. I think I'll live)

Put half the chocolate pudding in a wine glass
Slice the strawberries and add on top
Put second half of chocolate pudding on top
Crumble half a Thin mint on pudding
Add Cool Whip
Crumble second half on top
Eat remaining cookie :)

210 calories (170 if you don't eat the second cookie)
and Yes something about eating it out of a wine glass just feels extra special, a martini glass would achieve the same effect. It also doesn't make the serving look pitifully small (like it does if you put it in a cereal bowl)