Sunday, August 25 Lentil Orzo Casserole with Garlic Green Beans Rating: 4.25

While flipping through my cookbooks, I rediscovered the recipe for Lentil Orzo Casserole in Dining with Friends, the cookbook by Priscilla Feral and Lee Hall from Friends of Animals. I haven’t made it in a while and every time I do, I wonder why I don’t do it more often. I think maybe it’s because it has a long cooking time so it’s better suited to weekends. This time, I made a half batch, mostly because I forgot several things when I went to the grocery store. A full batch makes a lot, so you have plenty of leftovers for lunches. The basic gist of the dish is lentils, onions, garlic, orzo pasta and fire roasted diced tomatoes. It’s so good, and a nice hearty meal – perfect for a cozy Sunday night. I picked up some green beans at the farmer’s market on Sunday and made those as a side to go with the casserole. You know those garlic green beans they have at the Whole Foods hot bar? Yeah – I was craving some of those, so I steamed the beans and then lightly sautéed them in a little olive oil with a ton of garlic and some salt and pepper. This was a super easy side I will definitely make again. I don’t think it would be as good with frozen beans is it was with fresh, then again, most things are better fresh.