Curried Wild Rice & Lentils

I love cooking with friends.  I have a great group of friends who share my passion for food and I love it when we can all get together to cook up a storm, enjoy a bottle of wine, and catch up.  A couple of years back, three of us would get together once a week and cook a brand new meal.  We would alternate hosting and menu selection and we rated all of the food in a journal.  The "Calorie Club" as we called it has been put on a bit of a hiatus as one of the founding members, Sarah, has since moved to Grand Rapids.  But whenever Leigh, Sarah, and I get together, we make sure to plan a Calorie Club meeting. 

We also love sharing new recipes and ideas with one another, and today's post is exactly that!  Sarah was in town from Grand Rapids recently, and she passed along some beautiful wild rice and a recipe for curried lentils and wild rice.  I've never had much success with wild rice, but this rice cooked up perfectly.  And it was a lighter-colored rice, so it looked gorgeous when paired with the brown lentils and curry powder.  So simple and so tasty!  The dinner came together in a snap and I enjoyed two generous helpings before I finally cut myself off.  But do be sure to garnish with the sauteed onions -- made such a difference.  Thank you Sarah for sharing this recipe and for letting me post it here!

Curried Wild Rice & Lentils
graciously shared by Sarah M.
serves 4

Ingredients
1/2 cup raw wild rice
1/2 cup lentils
2 tbls butter
1 large sweet onion, sliced thin
3 cups boiling water
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 tablespoons curry powder

Directions
Rinse the rice and lentils.  In a large sauce pan or dutch oven, heat the butter over medium heat.  Add the sliced onions and saute for about 3-4 minutes, or until the onions are soft and translucent.  Remove half of the onions and reserve for garnish. 

Add your lentils and rice to the pan and saute, stirring continuously for about 3 minutes.  Add the boiling water, salt, pepper, and curry powder.  Bring back up to a boil, then reduce heat and cover, simmering over very low heat for 30-35 minutes or until the rice and lentils are cooked.  Don't lift the cover or stir while cooking. 

Serve hot and garnish with your reserved sauteed onion.