By the way, I just had a Ritz cracker, and guess what,
they no longer taste nearly so nice as they used to.

I wonder where you got that Ritz cracker from? We recently got some
Ritz crackers from ALDI. They were no where as nice as the Ritz we get
in the local stores, according to Gail who has much better taste buds in things like that than I do.

I'm not certain - the crackers were on a tray with cheese
and were represented as Ritz crackers. They were of the
appropriate color and shape, perhaps a tiny bit smaller
than I remember, but the aroma and flavor were just dead.

I seem to recall branded Ritz from the familiar red box
with the blue and yellow logo being quite different from
the ones I had as a child. In the case of the authorized
version, it may have been a gradual substitution by the
accountants of cheaper ingredients on the assumption that
nobody would notice.

I decided not to insult you with the eggplant recipes in tonight's file
of recipes, so I give you another of your favored items, perhaps with a little tweaking it might even serve you (e.g. use whole eggs).

Lentils are not a highly favored item, rather they have a
mildly pleasant flavor and are amenable to many of the
seasonings I rely on - turmeric, cumin, chile, onions,
garlic, and so on.

Title: Lentil Burgers
2 c Lentils, cooked
2 c Mixed vegetables -- cooked

Depends on the vegetables, but the proportion is way
too high.

1 Onion -- minced
1/2 md Green pepper -- minced
1 lg Garlic clove -- minced
1 lg Carrot -- shredded

Putting more onion and possibly carrot in,
substituting for other vegetables, might work.

1 c Oatmeal
2 Egg whites
2 tb Soy sauce
1/2 ts Basil

I'd be suspicious of these ingredients in this recipe.
It would be preferable to omit these and have lentil
sloppy joes rather than patties.

Salt and pepper
Other spices as desired

Cumin.

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Title: Lentil Chili
Categories: Vegetarian
Yield: 8 Servings

2 c Lentils
1/3 c Barley
1 Bay leaf
1 tb Cumin powder
3 c Water or vegetable broth
1 c Tomato sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 c Olive oil
2 md Carrots; grated fine
2 lg Onions; minced fine
2 tb Serpolet (mother of thyme)
8 cl Garlic; minced fine
4 tb Paprika
2 tb Cumin powder
1 tb Garlic powder
1 ts Salt
1 ts Thyme
1/2 ts Oregano
1/2 ts Pepper

Chili con lentejas

FIRST: Cook lentils and barley with bay leaf, cumin, and broth. Add
tomato
sauce and season to taste when half done.

SECOND: Heat olive oil; saute carrots, onions, serpolet, and garlic until
carrots are soft. Put lid on and let stew over lowest heat for 20 min.

THIRD: Grind remaining ingredients together to make a chili powder.

Combine cooked lentils with vegetable mixture. Add chili powder to taste
(I
used it all), and water to cover. Cook over low heat until water is
absorbed.

Michael Loo's note: this would look better if you cut the onions and
carrots into small dice, but I believe the flavors marry better this way.

Michael Loo's second note: the lentils taste just fine without chili
powder, but I like them better with.

Michael Loo's third note, 2006: Posted 19 Oct 1998 with this note:
I made it for some vegan people the other day, and they loved it.
If I were to make it for me purely, I would cut the lentils with a
bit of beef; perhaps 50-100 percent.

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