Lentil salad with sweet potatoes, almonds and currants

Here's a tasty salad, warm or cold, perfect for the lunch box. I used purple and white sweet potatoes (look at the colour!), but you can use any kind you like.

lentil salad with sweet potatoes, almonds and currants (makes four large servings)


1/2 cup almonds, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup lentils, rinsed
1 1/2 cup water or vegetable broth
2 small sweet potatoes, diced
Olive oil
1 tsp cinnamon
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup dried currants

Preheat oven to 375. In a heavy bottomed pot, heat olive oil. Add almonds, and sauté until golden, around 2 minutes. Scoop out the almonds, leaving behind the oil. Set almonds aside. Add onion to pot, and sauté for 3 or 4 minutes, until softened. Add bay leaves, lentils and broth. Bring to a boil, then turn heat to low and simmer, covered for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, toss potatoes with olive oil, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Spread on a baking sheet, and bake for 20-30 minutes, until cooked and browned.

When lentils are done, and almost all the water is absorbed, add currants and baked sweet potatoes. Taste, and add salt and pepper, if needed. Serve warm, or cool, on its own, or over a bed of salad.