Tuscan kale, cabbage and beluga lentil salad with cranberries

Oh dear! Time passes quickly, don’t you agree? No matter how much I try, I never seem to be prepared for December coming. Although this year we actually started early buying christmas gifts online, ordering christmas greeting cards (haven’t gotten to that in many years…) and I actually managed to fulfill Tuva’s dream to have an advent calendar on a string above her bed with 24 little gifts. Yes, Egon got one too.

Are you getting ready for christmas yet?

I wanted so much for my next blog post to be something sweet for christmas. In my head beautifully styled with garlands, stars and winter greens. And I have been experimenting with really good stuff. Mostly chocolate, mind you. It is just not good enough for a blog post yet.

So here I am with a seemingly very simple salad. At first I didn’t want to post it, because it just seems too simple. But then I realized that I always wanted this blog to be about inspiration to cook seasonal, health minded and simple food. Just like this salad. So, now I’m posting it anyway hoping that it will inspire you to make something similar this month.

This is simply the kind of casual food I make everyday for lunch or as a side for dinner. Here I’ve just dressed it up to a more christmas-like feel with cranberries and a wholegrain mustard dressing. I think it would be perfect as a christmas side dish with meat or poultry. And if you have vegetarians at your gathering just add some avocados, boiled eggs or the likes for a heartier meal.

I love winter for the ability to make sturdy and filling cabbage salads. Key here is to use a mandolin to shred the cabbage thinly. Add some beluga lentils and sunflower seeds along with tangy cranberries and sweet mustard dressing and you’re in for a real treat! Happy weekend friends!

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Printable recipe
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Tuscan kale, cabbage and beluga lentil salad with cranberries

serves 2 as a lunch or 4 as a side

2/3 cup black lentils (beluga) + 2 cups water
1 cup red cabbage, finely shredded
1 cup tuscan kale (or kale of your choice), finely shredded
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
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2 tbsp sunflower seeds, toasted
a handful fresh cranberries (frozen or dried if you can’t find fresh)

For the dressing:
2 tsp wholegrain mustard
1 tsp honey
5 tsp white balsamic vinegar
8 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
pinch of sea salt

1) Put the lentils in a saucepan, cover with water and add a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil and cook for 15 minutes, or until the lentils are tender but not falling apart. Take the saucepan off the heat and if time allows (you can do this one day ahead) let the lentils cool in their cooking liquid. This way they keep their consistency better, and taste more too. Once cooled, drain and set aside.
2) Rinse and halve the cranberries. Toast the 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds in a dry frying pan until golden.
3) To make the dressing, put the mustard, honey and vinegar into a cup or small jug. Mix well using a fork and then slowly add the olive oil in a steady stream. Add garlic and salt to taste.
4) Gently toss the kale and the cabbage together with the lentils, sunflower seeds and the dressing. Top with the toasted sunflower seeds and the cranberries.

Serve with meat or poultry or if vegetarian with avocado, eggs etc.