Full credit for this recipe goes to the wonderful souls behind http://www.sproutedkitchen.com/ I have been slowly cooking my way through their cookbook, which I have to say - if you dont have it, check out their website and seriously consider getting the book. I have SO many cookbooks but theirs is one of the best loved books in my kitchen at the moment. The lemon pesto in this recipe is extra special :)
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1 cup lentils, rinsed
2 cups water
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
3/4 cup ricotta
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
2 tbs fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2/3 cup breadcrumbs
Lemon pesto:
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup pine nuts
grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
pinch of sea salt
1 cup basil leaves
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tbs parmesan, freshly grated
2 tbs water
Place your lentils in a pot covered with water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered for 20 minutes, adding more water if needed. Drain lentils.
While the lentils are cooking make your pesto. Place the garlic, lemon juice and zest, pine nuts and salt in a food processor and blend until smooth. Add the basil, 1/4 cup of olive oil and parmesan, blending again until smooth. Remove from processor bowl and clean the processor parts.
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Add lentils to the processor and pulse until they form a chunky puree. I found it helped to add a tiny amount of water here to make it puree better. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and add in the eggs, olive oil, ricotta, parmesan cheese, garlic, fennel seeds, parsley, thyme, salt and pepper. Mix until well combined. Stir in the breadcrumbs and allow to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes to allow the flavours to blend.
Roll your lentil mixture into 1 inch balls, checking that the mixture holds together well. If you feel it is too wet, add another tbs of the breadcrumbs. Place the balls on a baking paper lined oven tray. They dont need to be widely spaced. Brush with a little olive oil if you like and bake for 20 minutes.
Remove from pan and serve with pesto sauce... try not to eat them all at once ;)