Grab Bag Dinner Night - Apple Brussel Lentils (vegan!)

Monday was grab bag dinner night and what fun it was! Ok, after my initial 'pick' from my 'bags', aka mason jars, I was not too excited. More like 'what the heck am I going to do with this?' But as the day went on and I stewed over what I would make out of my picks, I got more enthusiastic and was definitely looking forward to getting in the kitchen.



When honey got home I told him it might be a gamble tonight and his response was 'oh, is it grab bag dinner night?'. Well, to clarify, he hasn't had a bad meal yet but they are a little different.



Tonight's picks: 

Lentils

Tofurky italian sausage

Brussel Sprouts

Apples







Need:

1 cup lentils

2 cups water

1 tsp curry powder

1/4 tsp mace

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp savory

1 1/2 apples, sliced in 8ths then cut in 3rds (I used fuji)

15 to 20 brussel sprouts, ends cut off and first layer of leaves shucked, then cut in half

Extra virgin olive oil

Balsamic vinegar

1/2 sweet yellow onion, chopped

3-4 Tofurky italian sausages, sliced



Do:

Bring your water to a boil with a little salt and cook your lentils. Note: I used my medium soup pot to do this because you will be using the same pot to cook other things below. About 10 minutes in to them boiling, add the curry, mace, cumin and savory. Stir and let continue to cook.



Prepare your brussels by cutting off their 'butts', shucking the first layer of leaves and cutting in half. Prepare your apples by cutting in 8ths then slicing each 8th into 3rds.



Arrange brussels and apples on a cooking sheet and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Roast @ 400 for about 10-15 minutes. Keep an eye on them. (Note: I used a toaster oven @ 375 degrees. I upped the temperature here for a conventional oven based on my roasting experience in my own oven)







When lentils are finished cooking, transfer into a bowl.



In same pot, heat some oil and sautee the onion for about five minutes. Add sliced sausage and continue to cook about 5 more minutes. Add lentils back into pot along with your brussel/apple roasted mix.



Combine everything together, taste, add salt and pepper as needed and serve!







Serve:

I simply put it in a bowl, but it would be lovely over a bed of, you guessed it, spinach! Or on a plate. Also, a salad is a nice compliment to this hearty and filling meal.



Enjoy!