Spicy Lentil Tortilla

We’ve been sharing our contrasting Halloween traditions. For Meg, Halloween was a long

anticipated event. There just wasn’t the variety and quantity of candy available today, so it was a real treat to fill up bags with sugary bounty. As a child I didn’t go trick-or-treating, folks didn’t make much of an effort as it just wasn’t a big tradition in England back then.

Here, Meg’s teenage children have enjoyed Halloween around the country from the warmth of the Florida sunshine to the chillier climate of Connecticut, but all have featured beautifully hand crafted costumes from their Aunt Annie. Today I’m living on a different continent and making up for lost time by indulging my own children in all the excesses the 31st brings.

We suspect, that like us, you’re not prone to banging on neighbors doors and screaming at them. Tonight however, your little zombies will get the opportunity, for one lone hour or so, allowing them to give, receive and share with neighbors while enjoying the camararderie that costume wearing brings.

Following the candy bonanza, when we’re ready to retreat into the warmth of our homes, something warm and tasty awaits. If you’re entertaining and feeding a party of guests it’s so good to have a simple, low maintenance and whole food dinner to share which is flexible on timing for your Halloween schedule.

It’s easy to gravitate towards bulky meatier options, instead we have a Spicy Lentil Tortilla with Sour Cream as a delicious and substantial alternative for our hungry ghouls and ghosts.

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 generous cup / 1 medium onion, diced small
1 cup /2 medium carrots, diced small
2 tsp /2” piece ginger, minced
2 tsp / 2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 oz / 1 small green chili, very finely chopped * optional
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp cumin 
1 tbsp curry powder (mild or medium according to taste)
1 tbsp tomato paste
10oz / 1 ½ cups french green lentils
3 cups vegetable or chicken broth
2 packs small flour tortilla
sour cream
chopped cilantro

Heat the olive oil in a skillet. Add the onion, carrot, ginger, garlic and * optional chili and saute gently for 3 minutes. Next stir the spices and curry powder into the onion mixture and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Add the tomato paste, lentils and chicken / vegetable broth.. Stir well to combine the ingredients.

Pour the lentil mixture into the slow cooker and cook on high for 2 ½ hours. This can be left on the warm setting for flexibility once cooked.

Warm the tortilla in the microwave and wrap in foil until ready to use.

Make it a meal
Make up the tortilla as required, spooning a generous amount of lentils into the center, top with sour cream and chopped cilantro

* if you are accommodating varying tastes in spice, you can leave the chili out of the main recipe and add it at the end to your own tortilla

Looking Ahead
Zen successes and surprises next week!

Zen Toolkit
Prepare and refrigerate your vegetables the night or morning before you plan to make the recipe.

Line up your spice jars and set out dry ingredients the night before or skip this step and purchase our Indian Dal “Zen Blend” filled with organic herbs and spices – everything you need to simplify your slow cooking experience.

Zen Moment
“Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated”
– Confucius