These Greens and Lentils on Toast Belong in the Affordable Dinner Hall of Fame
This is Dinner and Change, a column about recipes that feed four people for about $10—or less.
Anybody who's been to my house for a casual weeknight dinner knows that there are only three ingredients in my Wednesday-night repertoire: beans, greens, and toast. Most of my go-to dinners uses at least one of these, whether it's sardines on toast, greens stirred into pasta, beans in a skillet with tomatoes and artichokes, beans in a burger, or simply beans marinating in a big bowl.
The best, of course, is when all three components are in one recipe. For that, I've historically turned to the Smoky Beans and Greens on Toast from my own cookbook, COOK90. People often ask cookbook writers what their favorite recipe in their book is, and for years I demurred ("I love all my children!"), but I no longer feel like beating around the bush. Smoky beans and greens on toast is my favorite. By far. (Sorry, Salmon and Chickpeas.)
Thing is, I ate more meat when I developed that recipe; now I'm more likely to make beans and greens without the bacon. To make up for the flavor lost in the absence of pork, I turn to Molly Baz's Lentil-Smothered Greens on Toast, which uses a truly wild amount of garlic: 10 smashed cloves, plus an extra clove to rub on the toast.
Luckily, garlic is cheap (about five cents per clove, by Epi's estimates). Actually, every ingredient in this meal is pretty affordable. Most of the money you'll spend on this recipe goes to the olive oil, the lentils, the greens, and the bread. Of those, the prices of the greens and bread are most volatile. Conventional bunches of kale can be had for 89 cents, but an organic bunch from the farmer's market can be three dollars or more. Likewise, bread prices are all over the map. Hefty slices of country-style bread take to frying well and won't collapse under fistfuls of lentils and kale, but they can be anywhere between three and ten dollars per loaf, depending on where you get it. I often use whatever bread I have around the house: challah, sandwich bread—I've even used a rogue hamburger bun.
No bread in the house? Don't let that deter you. I know I just waxed on about the synergy of beans, greens, and toast, but the truth is I've made tons of subs for the toast: roti, farro, quinoa, rice, dosas, tortillas, and these sourdough crepes. So when I say "toast," what I really mean is "carb," and that carb can be whichever you like. (The beans and greens, though, remain non-negotiable.)
Lentil-Smothered Greens on Fried Bread
Bon Appétit
The Breakdown
Olive oil: $1.69, Onion: $.50, Fennel: $.69, Celery: $.34, Garlic: $.55, Crushed Red Pepper Flakes: $.17, Paprika: $.48, Salt: $.01, Red Split Lentils: $1, Greens: $1.78, Lemons: $.89, Bread: $1.16. Total: $9.26 ($2.32 per serving). For more on how Epicurious prices out recipes, click here.
Use It Up
You'll have a bunch of lentils and most of a bunch of celery leftover from this meal, which is exactly what you need to make Braised Celery with Lentils and Garlic. (For 49 other ways to use up those lentils, click here.) If you'd rather keep your celery raw, we highly recommend this recipe for Kombu Celery, a snack that pairs perfectly with cocktails. (And speaking of celery and cocktails...). You'll also have plenty of bread leftover, which you probably don't need to be told how to use up. Still, here's a suggestion in the form of a question: When's the last time you made cinnamon toast?
Originally Appeared on Epicurious
