French Lentils with Beets, Sour Cherries, Urfa, and Almonds

I’ve always thought that lentils are such a powerful ingredient because of the way they instantly make any dish heartier. When tossed with tart dried cherries, honey-roasted beets, and an Urfa-spiked vinaigrette, they’re the perfect base for a dish that’s way more substantial than you’d ever think a salad could be. The beet method in the salad is swiped from the Vinegar and Honey– Roasted Beets (this page), so if you have those left over, use them here

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Step 1

1 Make the salad: Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Step 2

2 In a medium bowl, combine the beets, vinegar, honey, orange zest, coriander seeds, ½ teaspoon of the salt, and ½ tablespoon water. Toss to coat. Arrange the beets on a rimmed baking sheet and cover the tray tightly with foil. Roast until the beets can be easily pierced with a knife and the skin starts to caramelize, about 45 minutes. Remove the foil and swirl the beets in the sticky sauce to coat. Once the beets are cool enough to handle, cut them into ½-inch chunks. (Yep, the skin says on—so tasty with all that sweet glaze!) 3 Meanwhile, rinse the lentils under cold water. Place them in a medium pot with 2½ cups water and the remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to a simmer, and cover.

Step 3

Cook the lentils over medium-low heat until they are tender but not mushy, about 20 minutes. Drain well and allow to cool slightly.

Step 4

4 In a large bowl, toss together the lentils, beets, cilantro, shallot, almonds, and cherries.

Step 5

5 Make the dressing: In a medium bowl, whisk together the honey, vinegar, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, salt, Urfa, and black pepper. Continue whisking as you stream in the olive oil. Whisk until the dressing is emulsif i ed, about 1 minute. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more lemon juice and/or salt.

Step 6

6 Drizzle the dressing over the salad, toss to coat,and serve.