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July 28, 2020

Cherry Lentil Salad with Honey Balsamic Dressing

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If you’re like me and prefer a salad that is less about the leafy greens and more about an entire orchestra of flavors and textures, then this lentil salad recipe is for you!  Lentils bulk up this dish with lots of healthy protein and nutrients while summer fresh cherries add a sweetness that take this salad to the next level. The delicious honey balsamic dressing is something you’ll want to have in your fridge at all times!

white bowl filled with cherry lentil salad

A LENTIL SALAD RECIPE YOU CAN MEAL PREP

I need to get on my soap box here and say: lentils are the most underrated item in your pantry.  They are so good!  I don’t understand why the aren’t on the front of people’s minds when it comes to meal prepping.  For my weekly meals, I focus on batch cooking one carb.  I usually rotate between: quinoa, brown rice, barley, couscous, and LENTILS!  

lentils draining in a colander

Lentils are perfect for meal prep because they hold their shape and texture really well without getting mushy, and they soak up vinaigrettes beautifully.  I also like to prep at least a double batch of the honey balsamic dressing because it’s THAT good!  I love tossing it with a green salad or drizzling over chicken breast.  You’ll want to keep it on hand in your fridge at all times!

I used a few shortcuts in this recipe in order to pull it together in just 10 minutes!  Using rotisserie chicken meant I could add a lean protein, but it’s equally as good vegetarian style.  I opted for the Trader Joe’s pre-steamed lentils because all I had to do was take them out of the package and give them a quick rinse in a colander.  I kept them cold for this salad but you could also warm them up in the microwave for a minute and a half.  

box of pre cooked lentils from trader joes

From there, just assemble your meal prep containers with lentils, leafy greens like arugula or kale, pitted and halved cherries, sautéed asparagus and goat cheese. Top with chicken for extra protein and drizzle with the honey balsamic dressing when you’re ready to eat!

meal prep container with cherry lentil salad topped with chicken

NUTRITIONAL BENEFITS OF LENTILS

Aside from being delicious, lentils are a nutritional powerhouse! Check out some health benefits of these legumes:

  • They are a heart healthy source of folic acid, fiber and potassium
  • They contain the highest amount of protein originating from any plant. It’s roughly the same as red meat, chicken, fish and dairy.
  • They are packed with vitamin B, magnesium, and zinc
  • They are a great source of iron, which is of importance for those on a purely plant-based diet
  • Because they are high in fiber, they support healthy bacteria in your gut while keeping you regular
  • Because of the phytochemical they contain, they help protect against heart disease and type 2 diabetes
ingredients for cherry lentil salad in individual bowls

Ingredients and substitutions

I try to make sure that all of my recipes are incredibly versatile and flexible to meet your dietary and taste preferences. This lentil salad recipe is no exception! Here are some ideas on how you can customize it to make it yours!

  • Lentils-This recipe calls for pre cooked lentils but if you are to cook your own, I highly recommend black beluga lentils or French (puy) lentils because they hold their shape the best without breaking down and getting mushy.
  • Chicken-I added shredded chicken to this recipe to add extra protein and bulk, but you better believe it’s still great without it! Rotisserie chicken makes for a quick fix but I also find it to be great with a high quality canned tuna in olive oil or crumbled bacon.
  • Arugula-Any fresh green works well in this lentil salad, such as spinach, kale or even spring mix. I opted for arugula because I like it’s peppery flavor and it’s sturdy enough to hold up to the honey balsamic dressing
  • Cherries-I really like bing cherries in this recipe for their sweetness and their deep burgundy color. You could also swap out for rainier cherries, red grapes, or even dried cherries or cranberries in a pinch.
  • Asparagus-I love the addition of earthy asparagus in this salad but if you don’t have any on hand, I’ve also had great success with sautéed mushrooms.
  • Goat cheese-You know I’m a big fan of goat cheese but feta makes an excellent stand in as well.
white bowl with cherry lentil salad topped with chicken

Cherry Lentil Salad with Honey Balsamic Dressing

Katie Clack
Lentils bulk up this dish with lots of healthy protein and nutrients while summer fresh cherries add a sweetness that take this salad to a whole new level. 
5 from 1 vote
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 5 mins
Course Salad
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

Lentil Salad

  • 2 cups cooked lentils
  • 2 cups fresh arugula
  • 3/4 cup halved and pitted bing cherries
  • 1 1/2 cups asparagus, cut into 1" lengths
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded chicken (optional)
  • 1/2 cup goat cheese
  • 1 tbsp avocado oil
  • 1 pinch sea salt

Honey Balsamic Dressing

  • 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 1 tsp dijon mustard
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper

Instructions
 

  • In a skillet over medium heat, add 1 tbsp avocado oil. Once the skillet is warm, add the prepped asparagus and sautee until al dente. You want to take the raw edge off without making it mushy. Season with a pinch of sea salt.
  • In the meantime, prep lentils as per the directions on the package. I recommend rinsing under cold water in a colander. If you're starting with dried lentils, rinse them first. Bring 3 cups of vegetable or chicken stock and 1 cup of dried lentils to a boil in a saucepan. Once water is boiling, reduce heat to a simmer and cook until lentils are no longer crunchy, and are tender but not mushy. About 15-20 minutes depending on the variety of lentils you have. Drain excess water and let cool.
  • In a small tupperware container, add all the ingredients for the honey balsamic vinegar. Shake vigorously to emulsify the dressing and combine everything together.
  • In a large bowl, add the lentils, arugula, cherries, asparagus, and chicken if using. Dress lightly with the vinaigrette to taste. Add goat cheese just before serving and gently toss.

Notes

  • The best lentil varieties for a salad like this are French, black, brown or green.  
  • Buying a rotisserie chicken at the store and shredding it makes this recipe come together in a pinch!  Other great protein options are tuna and bacon.
  • If you don’t have cherries, other good substitutes include red grapes or dried cherries.
Keyword cherry, lentils, salad
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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Filed Under: Dinner, Lunch, Salads and Sides, Vegetarian Tagged With: balsamic, cherry, lentils

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Madison says

    July 29, 2020 at 1:08 pm

    This looks delicious – a perfect summer salad!

    Reply
    • Katie Clack says

      July 30, 2020 at 3:29 pm

      So good! My family hasn’t complained about me making it on repeat. :). I hope you try it Madison!

      Reply
  2. Chloe Helling says

    July 30, 2020 at 3:26 pm

    5 stars
    This literally has all of my favorite ingredients. Come cherry season here in Argentina I can’t wait to try this!

    Reply
    • Katie Clack says

      July 30, 2020 at 3:29 pm

      You and me both girl! Glad you love it!

      Reply
  3. Jett says

    August 4, 2020 at 9:40 pm

    My mouth is watering but looks so good

    Reply

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Lunch is served! And thanks to the work I did over Lunch is served! And thanks to the work I did over the weekend, it only took 3 minutes to toss this all in a container to take to work with me! So much tastier, nutritious and more affordable than any lunch I would have bought while on the road too. 🙌

Buddha grain bowls are the best way to use ingredients you have on hand in a creative way! This one is a bed of quinoa topped with roasted carrots, beets, tofu, avocado, beet hummus and feta.

Since I already prepped everything else, all I had to do was slice up the fresh avocado.  I don’t think it gets any easier than that! 

Do you have a favorite buddha bowl combo?

#tofurecipes #tofulover #beets  #roastedbeets #beethummus #hummuslover #roastedveggies #avocadolover #avocado🥑 #quinoarecipes #quinoabowl #buddhabowl #buddhabowls #grainbowl #nourishbowl #whatiateforlunch #mealpreps #healthyrecipes #healthyrecipeshare #eattherainbow🌈 #mealprep #mealprepideas #mealpreppin #batchcooking #mealprepsunday #mealprepsundays #mealprepmondays
Anyone spend their day dreaming about what they’ Anyone spend their day dreaming about what they’ll have for lunch or dinner?  My goal is to create meals that you’ll be looking forward to all day! These Mediterranean Swiss chard and sun dried tomato quinoa patties over romesco sauce are a meal you’ll crave all👏🏻day👏🏻long!

We make the quinoa on our prep day so we have it to make buddha bowls for lunches.  I like to go ahead and make the quinoa patties ahead of time while I’m at it because I know I won’t have the energy at the end of a long work day. 

Then, when meal time comes, I can quickly roast the asparagus in the oven while the quinoa patties fry up in a skillet.  BOOM! Another dinner that’s ready in 10 min and devoured just as quickly. 🙌 This means more time for an after dinner park or bike session to enjoy the beautiful weather this week! ☀️

Let me know below if you’d like the link to make this creamy and vibrant romesco sauce that will add a punch of flavor to any dish! 💥

#romesco #weeknightdinner #weeknightdinners #quinoarecipes #quinoalover #asparagusseason #asparagusrecipes #swisschard #sundriedtomatoes #vegetariandinner #vegetarianrecipes #springrecipes #personalcheflife #vegetarianrecipe #mediterraneandiet #mediterraneancuisine #easydinner #easydinners #whatiatetoday #whatiatefordinner #foodblogger #mealpreppin #mealpreppinglikeaboss #simplespoonfuls #prettyfoodtastesbetter
Time for a new meal plan! 🍾This spring inspired Time for a new meal plan! 🍾This spring inspired menu was so light, easy and deliciously satisfying.  You can click the link in my bio for the full breakdown on how I attacked batch cooking all these ingredients.  And if there’s a dish that sparks your interest, you can always just skip ahead specifically to that recipe. 

Moving forward, I’ll be making a more conscious effort to highlight seasonal produce  in my meal plans.  After all, not only are they more nutrient dense, flavorful and affordable, they are better for the environment too. 

So for this plan, I decided to highlight Swiss chard! 🥬 Not only is it packed full of vitamins K, C and A but it has a hearty texture, mild flavor, vibrant and colorful stems, and is wonderfully versatile!  For this meal plan we use the Swiss chard in: 
-Swiss chard, prosciutto and feta egg bites
-Swiss chard and sun dried tomato quinoa cakes
-Swiss chard, white bean and sausage soup

I essentially make one big batch of sautéed chard and use one cup for the egg bites, one cup for the quinoa cakes and the rest to build the soup.  One prepped ingredient becomes the base for three tasty meals.  Remember, this is all about cooking smarter and not harder! 💪 I intentionally don’t use it in *every single meal* because you want to be excited about seasonal produce, not burnt out by over doing it. 

These are the ingredients we will prep for this plan:
-quinoa
-beets
-romesco sauce
-roasted carrots
-crispy tofu
-pickled veggies (carrot, cucumber, red onion, and daikon)
-sauteed Swiss chard

Check out my stories to see how these ingredients came together to make 1 breakfast, 2 lunches, and 4 dinners for the week! 🙌. I’ll be sharing each of those meals as the week goes on. 

In the meantime, I challenge you to pick a seasonal ingredient yourself to weave into at least three dishes you’ll make this week.  Share with me below, what will it be? 🤔👇

#mealplan #mealplans #batchcook #batchcooking #mealpreps #mealpreppin #mealprepideas #mealprepmondays #mealprepmonday #mealprepsunday #mealprepsundays #mealpreprecipes #healthymealprep #healthymealideas #healthyrecipesideas #healthyrecipeshare #healthyrecipes #foodporno #whatiatetoday
This roasted tomatillo salsa verde is such a good This roasted tomatillo salsa verde is such a good addition to your warm weather snack rotation if you love chips and salsa as much as I do! 

I’ll be posting a how-to video with the recipe later this week so you can consider this a sneak peak.  Be warned, it makes a huge batch! I like to take some and use it to make shredded chicken verde for tacos or enchiladas, so delish! 

For the last meal plan, I drizzled this tomatillo salsa verde over breakfast burritos and southwestern cauliflower rice bowls. 

So while you wait for the full recipe to drop, tell me: Are you team red salsa or green salsa? 

#salsaverde #salsaroja #tomatillo #tomatillosalsa #tomatillos #roastedtomatillosalsa #homemadesalsa #mealpreppin #batchcooking #batchcook #mealpreps #mealprepinspo #mealprepsunday #mealprepsundays #mealprepmondays #mealprepmonday #easyrecipesathome #easyrecipes #simplespoonfuls #healthyrecipeshare #whatimade #chipsandsalsa #feedfeed #feedfeedvegan #food52 #foodphotographer
Happy Monday! I hope y’all had a great Easter! T Happy Monday! I hope y’all had a great Easter! This week I’ll be staying fueled for lunch thanks to these lentil bowls with roasted potatoes, green beans, hard boiled eggs and some crumbled bacon.

For these lentil bowls I love a good balsamic dressing with a touch of honey to drizzle on top.  A sprinkle of fresh herbs like dill, parsley or chives will help bring this lunch to life. 

Simple, nourishing, fresh and hearty, this bowl delivers!

Curious, what was your favorite dish out of last week’s meal prep plan I posted?  I love hearing your thoughts! 👇🙏

#lentils #lentilrecipe #buddhabowl #buddhabowls #hardboiledeggs #hardboiledegg #baconlovers #baconmakeseverythingbetter #lunchonthego #saladsofinstagram #saladforlunch #lentilsalad #healthylunch #healthydinner #healthylunchideas #easylunch #easylunchideas #wfhlife #wfhlunch #simplespoonfuls #whatiatetoday #whatiateforlunch #saladfordinner #mealpreps #justeatrealfood #mealprepideas #mealprepmonday #mealprepmondays #mealpreppin #mealpreplikeaboss
Meal Prep Tip! Take one ingredient and prepare it Meal Prep Tip!  Take one ingredient and prepare it two separate ways.  Or as I like to call it, cooking smarter not harder.💪

For example that could mean taking a sweet potato and roasting half and spiraling the other half.  In this instance, I made a double batch of cauliflower rice and then split it into two. 

For the first half, I folded in lemon zest and garlic and served that with yesterday’s pistachio crusted salmon.  For the other half, I mixed in lime zest and fresh cilantro.  That become the base for this burrito bowl.  I topped it with some of our prepped black beans, a dynamite corn and red pepper mix, roasted tomatillo salsa, leftover shredded chicken, bright cherry tomatoes and creamy chunks of avocado. 🥑🍅🌽🌶

I’ll take cilantro lime cauliflower rice over plain ol white rice any day of the week!  Especially when it’s topped with all this deliciousness.  Do you agree?  Washed down with a bubbly Topo Chico and I’m one happy girl! For example that could mean taking a sweet potato and roasting half and spiraling the other half.  In this instance, I made a double batch of cauliflower rice and then split it into two. 

For the first half, I folded in lemon zest and garlic and served that with yesterday’s pistachio crusted salmon.  For the other half, I mixed in lime zest and fresh cilantro.  That become the base for this burrito bowl.  I topped it with some of our prepped black beans, a dynamite corn and red pepper mix, roasted tomatillo salsa, leftover shredded chicken, bright cherry tomatoes and creamy chunks of avocado.

I’ll take cilantro lime cauliflower rice over plain ol white rice in my burrito bowl any day of the week!  Especially when it’s topped with all this deliciousness.  Do you agree?  Washed down with a bubbly Topo Chico and I’m one happy girl! 

What’s an ingredient you would prep two ways?

#cauliflowerrice #cauliflowerrecipes #burritobowl #ricebowl #tomatillosalsa #tomatillos #easydinner #easydinners #easydinnerideas #easydinnerrecipes #avocadolover #healthydinnerideas #healthydinners #lowcarb #lowcarbdiet #lowcarbrecipes #lowcarbmeals #lowcarbdinner #mealpreppinglikeaboss #mealpreppin #mealprepday #simplespoonfuls #topochico
Winner winner salmon dinner! This might’ve been Winner winner salmon dinner! This might’ve been my favorite meal of the week! The pistachio pesto salmon from @thewholecook paired with lemony cauliflower rice and garlic green beans was the perfect marriage of flavors.

I prepped a batch of cauliflower rice on Sunday and took half of it and blended in lemon zest and a clove of garlic to amp up the flavor. Since the green beans were blanched ahead of time all I had to do was warm them up in a skillet with some more garlic and sea salt while the salmon baked in the oven. 

Salmon is something I prefer to cook fresh the day I’m going to eat it, not only for optimal freshness but because it cooks so quickly it’s not a huge timesaver to make it ahead of time. Also, if I know I’m going to be reheating it to eat it warm, I don’t want it to be overcooked and get dried out. The only time I’ll make it ahead in advance is if I know I’ll be eating it cold on something like a salmon poké bowl. 

All in all, because of the items that were prepped in advance, this meal came together in about eight minutes but felt like something truly special. I’m definitely going to be making this over and over again throughout the a spring and summer! 

#salmondinner #salmonrecipes  #salmonrecipe #cauliflowerrice #greenbeans #pistachios #mealprepideas #mealprep #mealprepping #mealpreppin #mealpreps #mealprepsunday #mealprepsundays #mealprepmonday #mealprepmondays #healthydinnerideas #healthydinners #eatinghealthyisfun #eatwithyoureyes #prettyfoodtastesbetter #whatiatefordinner #simplespoonfuls #thefeedfeed #easydinner #easydinners #quickdinner #quickdinnerideas #pescatarianrecipes #pescatarianlife #garliclovers
Fair warning: you’re gonna see a lot of breakfas Fair warning: you’re gonna see a lot of breakfast burritos on this account. 🌯 Not that I need to have an excuse for serving up these delicious wraps but there is a bit of a backstory there. 

In 2011 we opened a cafe and these breakfast burritos are what put us on the map.  They were stuffed with real ingredients and grilled to perfection on a panini press for a crunchy exterior.  Making these burritos takes me back to those days! 

We made a homemade tomatillo salsa that we served alongside the burritos so I made sure to include that in this week’s meal plan.  That recipe will be coming atcha later this week! 

For now, enjoy this tasty and filling vegetarian black bean, spinach and potato breakfast burrito! 🙌

Are you team veggie burrito or would you add bacon or chorizo? 🥓

#breakfastburrito #burritos #burritolife #burritolove #breakfastofchampions #breakfastnook #breakfastrecipes #vegetarianbreakfast #veggiebreakfast #plantbasedbreakfast #plantbasedrecipes #vegetarianrecipe #vegetarianmealprep #plantbasedmealprep #batchcook #batchcooking #tomatillo #tomatillosalsa #salsaverde #homemadesalsa #eatwithyoureyes #prettyfoodtastesbetter #homemadebreakfast #mealprepbreakfast #simplespoonfuls #mealpreppin #mealprepideas #mealprepinspo #thefeedfeed
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