Tzimmes Kugel

Originally called "Mrs. Feinberg's Vegetable Kugel," from a cookbook by Joan Nathan, this recipe has been an absolute fixture at family events for decades.

I have substituted safflower oil for margarine and reduced the quantity of both oil and sugar by 50%. Butter or margarine could also be used; in these cases, use 1/3 cup.

I am curious as to how this would work with crushed crackers instead of matzo meal. I'll bet water crackers would be quite similar, and graham crackers might be excellent.

We usually triple the recipe and cook it in a bundt pan.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup grated raw apple
• 1 cup grated raw sweet potato
• 1 cup grated raw carrots
• 1 cup matzo meal
• 1/4 cup safflower oil (or 1/3 cup margarine or butter)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp nutmeg

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 325.
2. In a large bowl, combine apples, sweet potatoes and carrots.
3. In another bowl, combine all dry ingredients.
4. Add oil to vegetable mixture and combine well. Add in dry ingredients and combine well.
5. Grease a loaf pan or muffin tins and add the mixture to the pan. (You can also triple the recipe and use a bundt pan; see above.)
6. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes (muffins), 45 minutes (loaf) or 1 hour (bundt pan).
7. Increase heat to 350, remove foil, and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
8. Allow to cool slightly before slicing.

Baba ghannouj

I tried to make baba ghannouj several years ago using a recipe, and concluded that it was a hassle. Today, I decided to try it entirely by feel and concluded that the recipe I'd tried was stupid. Baba is really easy. I wish I'd had this epiphany before.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 eggplant
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp tahini
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1-2 cloves garlic, peeled
  
• 1/2 jalapeño (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Slice the eggplant the long way into 3/4" slices. (Do not peel.)
2. Arrange the slices on a broiler pan and broil on high for 10 minutes per side.
3. Transfer all the eggplant and all other ingredients to the food processor.
4. Process until desired consistency has been reached. Adjust seasonings if desired.

Serves two; recipe scales easily.

Dill potato salad

This is an update on the spicy mustard potato salad, and I think this time I got it where I want to be. The sauce on these is a lively shade of spring green, so garnish with red onion rings and whole dill.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3-4 lbs red potatoes
• 1/2 medium red onion, finely diced
• 3/4 cup coarsely ground mustard
• 1/2 cup spicy brown mustard
• 1 bunch dill, stems removed (divided use)
• 1 shallot, peeled
• 1/3 cup cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

1. Boil the potatoes, skin-on, until tender but not too soft, about 20 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature, about 1 hour.
   
2. Cut the potatoes into 3/4" cubes and place in a mixing bowl with the onions. Set aside.
   
3. Put the mustards, oil, vinegar, shallot and half the dill into a food processor. Puree until quite smooth.
4. A little at a time, gently mix the dressing into the potatoes, tasting as you go, until the desired intensity is reached.
5. Transfer to a serving dish, garnishing with the remainder of the dill.

Best if served at room temperature.

Balsamic Vinaigrette

Pure as the driven snow; thick, zesty and delicious. And it takes about 15 seconds to prepare.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 shallots, peeled
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp dried tarragon
  
• 1/4 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS:

Combine all ingredients in a blender until smooth, about 10 seconds. Serve on any green salad.

Apple cranberry sauce

Adjust the proportions here according to taste; they can vary pretty widely. Mine comes out quite tart and not too sweet.

Note that applesauce requires almost no water; you just add enough to allow the apples to steam themselves into a sauce.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 lbs granny smith or other sour apple, peeled, cored and quartered
  
• 1 lb. fresh cranberries, rinsed
• 3 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
  
• 4 cloves, whole
  
• 1 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 cup water

DIRECTIONS:

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Mix thoroughly and turn heat to low. Let cook for 8-10 hours, stirring occasionally. Mash before serving. Refrigerate unused portion.

Ratatouille Channa

This chickpea and eggplant curry started out as a recipe for ratatouille from "Cooking for Engineers." But I don't like sweet peppers, so I decided to substitute finely diced carrots to achieve an alternative sweet crunch. And then I didn't have any zucchinni. And then I decided to add a pound of chickpeas to make it into a meal. So it basically has no resemblance to the original. But it'd delicious!

NOTE: You will be deglazing the pot in this recipe, so do not use a non-stick pot!

If you substitute vegetable broth or white wine for the chicken stock, this recipe is vegan and kosher parve.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 ripe tomatoes, diced
• 1 1/2 lbs eggplant, cut into 1/2 cubes
  
• 1 lb. cooked chickpeas (about 8 oz. dry)
  
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3/4 cup chicken stock or white wine
• 4 carrots, diced into very small (<>
• 10 oz. crimini mushrooms, quartered
  
• 2 tbsp. tomato paste
  
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
  
• 4 sprigs basil, minced
• 5 sprigs parsely, minced
• Olive oil for sauteing
• Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spatula.
2. Add onion and continue to sauté until soft, another 4-6 minutes.
3. Add the tomato paste and combine, continuing to sauté until the tomato paste begins to darken, 1-2 minutes.
   
4. Deglaze the pot with the broth, scraping the bottom with the wooden spatula to free all the onion and tomato drippings.
5. Once the broth begins to simmer, add the mushrooms eggplant and carrots. Cook for 12 minutes, stirring frequently.
6. Add diced tomatoes, chickpeas and minced herbs. Reduce heat to low and cook, covered, for a couple more minutes.

Serve with white rice. Makes excellent leftovers.

Clear borscht (beverage)

This is what you do with leftover beet stock.

If you are specifically looking to make clear borscht and therefore just want a lot of beet stock, just shred or grate a number of beets and then boil them in water until they're fully cooked. The grating allows more flavor and color to be leeched from the beets.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups beet stock
• 1 cup water (or ice if beet stock is warm)
  
• 1-2 tbsp. white vinegar, according to taste
• 1 tbsp. sugar
• pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS:

Shake all ingredients well in a cocktail shaker. Pour into a tall, clear glass. Add a dollop of sour cream if desired.

Pickled beets

The basis for this recipe came from a very pretty book by Arthur Schwartz entitled Jewish Home Cooking. His recipe called for onions instead of garlic, but on the day I first made it, I discovered that all my onions were spoiled. I made the substitution and a couple other tweaks and never looked back.

I like this much better with red beets, but if you like the mellower taste of the yellows (or are freaked out by the beeturia that affects some folks), go ahead and use the yellow ones. Just keep in mind that, according to the New York Times, red beets are the #1 food you should be eating more of.

Do not throw away the liquid in which the beets are boiled. That liquid is the textbook definition of a beet stock, and can be mixed up into a perfect clear borscht. Clear borscht made from yellow beets is completely indistinguishable to the eye from lager beer.

If your beets come with greens, you can prepare them like swiss chard or collard greens.

The following ingredients are per 1-quart jar. You will undoubtedly want to make more than one jar at a time.

UPDATE 7/17/2008: Use a higher proportion of vinegar and sugar, and less garlic, when pickling yellow beets.

INGREDIENTS (PER JAR):

• 1 1/2 lbs. beet roots (net weight after removing greens)
• 3-4 garlic cloves (1 per beet), peeled
• 1-2 bay leaves (1 per 2 beets)
• 2 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 1/2 cup white vinegar
  
• pinch of salt (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Scrub the beets well, but do not peel them. Put them in a pot of cold water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, cook until just tender but not soft, about 20-30 more minutes depending on the size of the beets.
2. Meanwhile, mix the water, vinegar, sugar and salt in a small pitcher or liquid measuring cup. (It makes it easier to pour.)
3. Once the beets are ready, remove them from the cooking liquid (reserving the liquid) and rinse them with cold water. You may wish to reduce the liquid further.
   
4. Peel and slice the beets. The peel of a cooked beet may be easily removed by hand by gently squeezing the beat, or you may use a peeler.
5. Pack the beets into the jar, adding a peeled garlic clove after each beet and a bay leaf after two beets.
6. Add all of the vinegar mixture. Add enough reserved beet stock to fill the jar to the brim.

Store the jar in the refrigerator. The beets are pickled after one day. However, it takes four or five days for the garlic flavor to infuse the beets with a soft, warm garlic glow.

Hummus

UPDATE 1/16/09: As I get more and more proficient with crushing garlic, I realize that I need less and less of it to unleash a garlicy flare. At this point, three cloves of raw garlic creates an overwhelming garlicky taste, even for more than two pounds of chick peas. The recipe has been updated accordingly.

Hummus is one of my favorite foods. But the results were fairly inconsistent when I used my typical cooking approach of throwing things together without measurements. Finally, I decided to get serious with the hummus and produce an exact procedure for producing this delectable paste precisely as I want it every time.

If you ignore everything else I say here, remember this: forget canned chickpeas. They produce a mushy, metallic-tasting hummus that, while slightly cheaper than storebought hummus, is not much tastier. You want dry chickpeas, and what you do with them will greatly affect how good your hummus is. (It's not as simple as you thought, is it?)

There are several ways to get excellent results from dried, including traditional reconstitution via the soak-and-boil approach. But this takes a lot of attention and time, things that I do not part with easily. The method I ultimately favor is using a crockpot, which is quick, effortless, and does not require you to stay at home while it cooks.

There is also the issue of what variety of chickpea to use. The most familiar to us here in North America is the European (Kabuli) chickpea, which is large and pale beige. But there is also a darker, smaller variety: known variously as "kala chana," "black chickpeas," "desi chickpeas" or "Bengal gram," these chickpeas have a higher fiber content, a nuttier taste and a firmer consistency. I prefer them.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb. dry chick peas
• 1-3 medium garlic cloves, crushed
  
• 8 tbsp lemon juice or cider vinegar
• 6 tbsp. tahini (ground sesame seeds)
• 4 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tbsp. red pepper flakes (optional)
  
• 1 tsp. salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. Put the chickpeas into a slow cooker. Inspect them for rocks, stems and other foreign particles, and then rinse them several times with cold water.
2. Fill the pot about halfway with water--about enough to cover the chickpeas and then that much twice more.
   
3. Cook in the slow cooker on 'high' for 3-4 hours or until chickpeas are tender but still firm.
   
4. Transfer the chickpeas to a colander. Rinse thoroughly with cold water to remove any excess starch. Allow to dry for several minutes.
5. Transfer the chickpeas and all other ingredients to a food processor. Allow to process for several minutes or until silken. If the chickpeas are too firm to process, add 1 tbsp. water (and not more!) at a time and stir, then try again. Use the absolute minimum amount of water possible.

A common variant is to add za'atar to the hummus. Keep in mind that most za'atar comes pre-salted, so adjust your salt accordingly. Za'atar is available in any Middle Eastern market, as well as any spice shop.

Keeps well for several days. Immediately prior to serving, heat desired portion slightly in the microwave, and top with paprika, pine nuts and olive oil. Serve with pita.

Ashkenazi Charoset

During the Passover holiday, when Jews tell the story of the biblical Exodus from Egypt, one of the ritual foods we eat is a paste called charoseth. Consisting of sweet fruit, nuts and wine, charoseth symbolizes the mortar which the ancient Israelites were said to have used during their enslavement to the Pharaoh.

Whereas Ashkenazi Jews tend to eat coarse, moist charoseth made from fresh fruit such as apples, Sephardic Jews prefer a smooth concoction made primarily from dried fruits. For a Sephardic charoset, see the 'Fig and Banana Paste' recipe below.

The most basic recipe for Ashkenazi charoset is to combine 2 parts chopped apples with 1 part chopped almonds or walnuts, then add about 1 tbsp. extra sweet red wine and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon for every apple used.

Here I have used some dried fruit, which was an action motivated out of desperation as I ran out of walnuts and had added too much cinnamon. But the results were good.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 crisp apples (such as Fuji or Gala), peeled and cored
  
• 3/4 cup walnuts
  
• 3/4 cup black raisins
  
• 6 black mission figs
• 1 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice
• 2 tbsp. honey
  
• 1/4 cup extra sweet red wine
  
• 1/2 tsp. ground cloves

RECIPE:

1. Chop the apples with the sharpest chopping knife you have (to prevent bruising) and immediately combine with lemon juice in a bowl.
2. Chop the walnuts by hand or in a food processor into 1/4" pieces. When chopping hard foods by hand, make sure that you cut with the rear of the blade (closest to your hand) while steadying the knife from the front with your off hand. This will keep the food from flying off the cutting board.
3. Chop the raisins and figs in the same fashion.
4. Combine all ingredients.

Serve within a few hours. It will still be delicious for a couple of days, but it will discolor and grow less crisp as time goes on.

Fig and Banana Paste

This rich, smooth fruit and nut butter is one of the most attractive toppings for crackers or bread that I've ever tasted. It is a dark, intense paste with the consistency of peanut butter and a rich, aromatic body. Top with a bit of goat cheese on toasted baguette for a formidable hors d'oeuvre.

I originally posted it as a Sephardic charoseth recipe, and indeed it is based on one, but I simply felt it was unfair to limit it to that role.

INGREDIENTS:

• 20 black mission figs
• 1/4 cup raisins (dark or golden)
• 1 banana
  
• 1/4 cup very sweet red wine
  
• 3 tbsp. honey
• 3/4 cup walnuts
• 3/4 cup almonds (chopped, slivered or sliced)
  
• 1 tsp. fresh ginger
• 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. nutmeg
• 1 tsp. allspice
• 1 tsp. cloves
• 1 fresh jalapeño, stem and seeds removed (optional)
  

DIRECTIONS:

1. Put the figs in a food processor and puree for about a minute. (You may want to hold onto the food processor for this.)
2. Add the banana, honey and wine and jalapeño to the food processor and continue to pulverize for another minute or two.
3. Add the nuts and spices and continue to process until smooth, which may take several minutes.

Refrigerate if preparing ahead of time. Serve at room temperature.

Pickled Carrots

If a food product comes in a nice jar--clean, a useful shape, sturdy lid--I usually run it through the dishwasher and keep it around in case I want to preserve something. These kinds of jars are perfect for an impromptu jam or pickle that you want to throw together and put in the fridge.

Here is just such a case: I forgot to put the carrots in the cholent (see below), and didn't want them to go to waste. These sweet, spicy pickles were ready in a week, and probably would have kept much longer than that, but at the rate we're eating them, I'll never find out.

Since these are refrigerator pickles, you don't need to go too crazy about acid levels and so on, but I would still sterilize the jars with boiling water just to be on the safe side.

Many pickle recipes frown on cider vinegar because it turns the brine yellow, but so do carrots, and I think cider vinegar tastes better. One bunch of carrots is good for two jars or so.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 bunch carrots, peeled
• 1 tbsp. salt
  
• 3 tbsp. dried dill
• 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 cups water
• 3/4 cup sugar
  
• Several whole cloves of garlic, peeled (2-3 per jar)
  
• Several bay leaves (2 per jar)
• 1 fresh chili pepper per jar (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Steam or boil the carrots until just slightly tender. Cut to fit your jars, or into slices.
2. Place the carrots into the washed and sterilized jars.
3. Stuff the garlic, bay leaves and chili peppers in between the carrots.
4. Combine all remaining ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for several minutes.
5. Pour liquid over carrots, filling the jars to the brim, then carefully put the lids on.
6. If you're paranoid, you could boil the prepared jars in water for 10-15 minutes.
7. Refrigerate for 1 week.

I would assume that these would be good for at least a month, but I really have no idea because once you open the jar, you eat them all pretty fast. They go great with hamburgers or other beef dishes.

Vegetable Borscht

Vegetable borscht is extremely versatile. For one thing, it is fat free and extremely healthful (assuming you don't have some kind of prejudice against carbohydrate). It is appropriate to serve it either hot or cold; if you're kosher, it can go with dairy or meat meals depending on what you like to put in it.

Traditionally, you put things into the borscht right as you're about to eat it, just like dressing a hamburger. And like hamburger, there are a million and one options and they all have their appeal. Here are some suggestions:

• Shredded red cabbage (easy either by hand or in a food processor)
• Sliced radishes
• A hard boiled egg
• Half a boiled potato
• Sour cream or cottage cheese

When I make borscht, I usually have several of these things on hand. Speaking of hands, the beets will turn your hands purple, so wear gloves if that sounds unattractive to you. (For me, it's a point of pride.)

Beets get much sweeter as they cook, and somewhat sweeter as the soup mellows, so take it easy with the sugar. The following proportions are all approximate, as I have never measured anything when making borscht, even the first time I made it. And neither should you.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3-4 lbs beets, peeled and cut into 3/4" cubes
• 1 large red onion, chopped
• 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• Lots of dill, fresh or chopped
• Prepared horseradish (quantity depends on intensity, which varies greatly)
• Cold water (see below)

• Optional: 1/2 head red cabbage, shredded
  

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine beets and onion in a soup pot.
   
2. Add the lemon juice and vinegar.
   
3. Fill up the pot with water until it's about 1-2" higher than the vegetables.
4. Add the remaining ingredients except cabbage (if using); bring to a boil.
5. Reduce to low heat and let simmer, covered, for about an hour or until the beets have softened.
6. If using cabbage, add it in and allow to cook until it has wilted somewhat.
   

Serve hot or cold.

PAIRINGS: Beets have a slippery, soft sweetness that pairs extremely well with acid. A structured, tart white wine such as a Muscadet or Chablis brings out some of the more delicate qualities of the beet.

Sour cranberry applesauce

I think this tart applesauce is absolutely delicious. It's also very easy and you can use old apples for it. I'm planning on serving it with sweet potato latkes and sour cream. A variation I'd like to try is to use fresh rhubarb in addition to, or in place of, the cranberries. If you do that, compensate with extra lemon juice; rhubarb, though tart, is not as sour as cranberries.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4-5 lbs. apples, peeled and cored (firm, crunchy apples like Granny Smith and Golden Delicious are good)
• 12 oz. package fresh cranberries
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tsp. nutmeg
• 4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. whole allspice (or 1/2 tsp. ground)
  
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 3/4 cup water
• Granulated sugar to taste (I used about half a cup)

RECIPE:

1. Cut the apples into quarters. Combine all ingredients except white sugar in a pot.
2. Heat until water is boiling, then reduce heat to a simmer, covered, for about 25 minutes.
3. Mash with a potato masher, then begin adding granulated sugar and tasting until you've reached the desired level of sweetness. (Warning: this is going to be REALLY SOUR before you start adding the granulated sugar!)

Banana Ketchup

Real ketchup has very little in common with the highly-processed red stuff you get in the plastic bottle. It also doesn't have to contain any tomatoes at all, although this recipe happens to have a little. Use this banana ketchup anywhere you would have used ordinary ketchup--on meat, eggs, fries, whatever. The banana flavor provides a smooth, gentle balance to the zesty sweetness of the vinegar and spices.

One note: this recipe produces a lot of ketchup. If you double it, you had better be planning on giving some away. (Although you should always give away jars of homemade sauces, preserves and jams: people will think of you whenever they eat it!)

My recipe is based on this one, with some significant modifications. In particular, I thought theirs was far too acerbic, not thick enough, and I strongly disagree that the ketchup should be strained: the good stuff is what was left in the strainer!

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 large, ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 1 medium onion
• 1 tbsp chopped garlic
• 3 oz. tomato paste
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/3 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup dark molasses
• 1 1/2 tsp. (=1/2 tbsp.) salt
• 1 tsp. allspice
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. cloves
• Hot pepper to taste
  

DIRECTIONS:

1. Chop onions in a food processor with the metal blade.
2. To the onions, add bananas, raisins, garlic, tomato paste and vinegar to the chopped onions. Puree until smooth.
3. Transfer the puree to a nonstick saucepan. (Nonstick or you'll be sorry!)
4. Add 1 1/2 cups water, the lemon juice, brown sugar, salt and hot pepper; stir thoroughly.
   
5. Bring to a gentle simmer and allow to simmer, uncovered, for 60 minutes, occasionally stirring and removing the scum from the top.
6. Add the molasses and the spices; let cook for another 30 minutes or until desired consistency is reached.
7. Let stand for 10 minutes.
8. Pour into glass jars, and/or set some aside to make barbecue sauce.

Refrigerate. Keeps for 1 month.

Red Bean and Walnut Salad

Don't be fooled: the only similarity this has with the recipe below is the basic ingredients. Aside from that, it has much more in common with hummus: the flavor, the heartiness, the incredible ease of making it. The walnuts play a similar role to tahini, but of course have a very different flavor. With much more texture than hummus, this is also more of a salad than a dip. Served with an eggplant course, it would also make a good vegan or vegetarian dinner.

(This recipe is based on a similar recipe called "Red Beans with Walnut Sauce" from the Russian cookbook Please to the Table.)

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb. dry red beans
• 8 oz. walnuts, chopped
• 1 medium red onion, finely chopped
• 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tbsp chopped garlic
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander seeds
• Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Rinse and cook the beans. You can either do this the conventional way (soak overnight, boil for 2 hours, let sit for an hour) or the lazy way: throw them in a slow cooker with 3 quarts of water and let it cook on low for 8-12 hours. Drain the beans and put in a bowl.
2. Mash the beans slightly, then mix in all other ingredients.

Beet salad with lentils

There's one thing you can say about the combination of beets and lentils: When you feel the beet, you can't stop the pulse! Pulse, get it? Yeah, didn't think so.

Anyways: this is a very refreshing and filling vegetarian (and vegan!) dish which can happily serve as a main course. The lentils give it a nutty texture and provide a great deal of protein and fiber, and the potatoes provide enough body to make it into a meal. Since potatoes cook faster than beets, you could experiment with cutting up the beets before cooking. (I happen to like the difference.)

My first try at this used dried green peas and new potatoes. I found that both of these lacked sufficient firmness when cooked to make a satisfying salad. So the version I'm putting below contains the substitutions I plan to make for the next time I do it. As always, feedback is welcome.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 lbs. loose red beets (about six large beets)
• 1 lb. russet potatoes
• 1 lb. dried green lentils (green holds its shape the best)
• Fresh dill, finely chopped
• Balsamic vinegar
• Olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

1. Prepare your beets and potatoes by peeling them and, if you wish, cutting the beets in half so that they'll be softer by the time the potatoes are done.
   
2. Rinse and drain the lentils, then put into a pot with about 3 quarts of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer, covered, for about 30-40 minutes or until lentils are soft but not falling apart. Drain excess water and set aside.
   
3. Simultaneously boil the root vegetables, uncovered, in a separate pot; they will take a little less time than the lentils (maybe 25-30 minutes). You'll want to keep these at a rolling boil.
   
4. When the beets and potatoes are soft, cut them into 3/4" cubes.
5. Combine all vegetables with the dill, plenty of balsamic vinegar (more than you'd think--it soaks it right up), some lemon juice, a dash of olive oil, and a bit of salt.

Serve with chopped red onion, hard boiled eggs, yogurt, whatever you like. Or just eat it plain. That's what I did, accompanied by a glass of giovane that I happened to have around. The sweet, floral tones of the immature red really played nicely with the earthy sweetness of the beets and the dry starchiness of the lentils. Lovely!