Lentils salad with feta cheese, tomatoes and olives

Well, this dish is quite versatile because it can be served in different ways. First of all as a salad or a light lunch along with crusty bread or Greek rusks. To make it an even more full meal you can separately boil 1 cup of rice (of your choice) in salted water and mix it with the lentils when you are ready to add the dressing. As for the meat lovers this dish goes perfectly well with grilled chicken fillets

Recipe of Myrssini Lambraki, a popular food writer

from "Gastronomos" magazine of "KATHIMERINI" newspaper

Ingredients (for 4 people):
2 tea-cups of lentils (preferably coarse)
2 bay leaves
2 cloves of garlic, kept whole
1/2 tsp of dry oregano
1 small onion, finely chopped
10 small cherry tomatoes, cut in half
200gr. of feta cheese, cut in small cubes
2 tbsp of fresh spearmint, finely chopped (or 1 tsp of dried)
1/2 a bunch of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
12 Kalamata olives, pitted and finely chopped

For the dressing:
80ml of olive oil
2 tbsp of red wine vinegar
1 clove of garlic, puréed
salt
pepper

Method:
In a large pot add plenty of water (no salt) and put the lentils along with the bay leaves, the whole garlic cloves and the oregano. Boil in medium heat for about 25-30 minutes until they are soft but not overcooked. Drain the lentils in a colander and discard the bay leaves and the whole garlic.

Transfer the lentils in a salad bowl and leave aside.

In a blender (or a jar with a lid) add the olive oil, the vinegar, the puréed garlic, salt and pepper. Beat (or shake) the ingredients very well until they blend.

Pour the dressing over the lentils, cover with cling film and place the bowl in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Take the salad out of the fridge and add the tomatoes, the spearmint, the parsley, the onion, the olives and the feta cheese.

Gently stir with two spoons and serve immediately in any of the suggested ways mentioned at the top of the post.