A few weeks ago now I was headed outside to take a walk for my break and noticed—across the hall from my office—a book in the CAHNRS’ extension office.

The Pea & Lentil Cookbook – From Everyday to Gourmet by the USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council.
I immediately wandered in and started looking through the book – surprised by how many naturally vegan and vegetarian recipes there were amongst the omnivorous ones — which can easily be made vegan.
A few that caught my eye and had my stomach growling:
- Split Pea and Pimiento Salad
- Lentil, Chili, and Jicama Salad – it’s not often you see a recipe using jicama!
- Greek Lentil and Feta Vinaigrette Salad – I’m thinking this tofu feta would be fabulous trade-in.
- Samosas
- Lentil Potstickers
- Red Lentil Hummus
The list could go on and on!
For my first recipe I chose the Bar-B-Q Lentils from page 187 and made a few adaptions. Their recipe called for dry lentils but I had cooked ones hanging out in the fridge. I also decided to be adventurous and throw in some carrot-ginger pulp we had leftover from juicing and all that meant was I added a little bit more liquid. Feel free to leave out the carrot pulp or if you don’t have a juicer just add some shredded or finely diced carrots—the recipe doesn’t judge.
Bar-B-Q Lentils
serves 6-8
- 5-6 cups cooked lentils – I used black beluga
- 1/2 cup un-sulphured blackstrap molasses
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1 teaspoon vegan worcestershire sauce – try to find this at your local co-op or health food store
- 1-2 teaspoons granulated onion powder
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
- 2 cups carrot pulp (from juicing – ours had a little ginger in it too) + a little bit of liquid – maybe 1/4-1/2 cup [pulp and liquid optional]
- 1/4 – 1/2 cup of Choosing Raw’s Coconut Bacon
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Combine ingredients in 9×9 inch pan – stir well to mix everything up.
- Top with coconut bacon and bake for 45 minutes at 350°F. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
This is delicious!
Eating Ideas:
- As a side
- A main with a heaping serving of greens
- Over a baked or steamed potato
- In a whole pita pocket with romaine lettuce
- In a collard leaf, rolled like a burrito
Enjoy! xo