Lentil, Tomato, and Goat Cheese Salad

Nice change of pace salad, perfect year-round, but especially nice for summer pot-lucks and cookouts, as there's no mayo to spoil. You could tweak this recipe quite a lot and add different spices to get a whole new recipe. This could work as both a main meal or as a side dish, depending on your preference.

• Ready In: 1 hr 5 mins
• Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

• 1  cup lentils (I use brown)
• 2  tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1  bunch green onion, minced
• 1  tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1⁄4 cup olive oil
• 1 1⁄3 cups  diced peeled cucumbers
• 2⁄3 cup  diced plum tomato (seed if you like)
• 1⁄3 cup  finely-chopped red onion
• 2  tablespoons  chopped fresh dill or 1  tablespoon dried dill
• 2  tablespoons  chopped fresh parsley or 1  tablespoon dried parsley
• 3  cloves  minced garlic
• 6  ounces  soft fresh goat cheese, chilled for easier crumbling (like Montrachet)
• 1⁄4 cup  lightly-toasted walnuts or 1⁄4 cup pine nuts, with 2 t reserved for garnish (optional)

Directions

1. Cook lentils in medium pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 25 minutes, and drain well.
2. Whisk together in a large bowl vinegar, green onions and mustard in large bowl.
3. Gradually whisk in oil.
4. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Add lentils and let stand until cool.
6. When cool, add cucumber, tomatoes, onion, dill, parsley and garlic to lentil mix.
7. Season again with salt and pepper to taste.
8. Cover and chill about 1 hour.
9. Just before serving, crumble goat cheese over salad and mix gently to combine.
10. If using lightly-toasted nuts, sprinkle over salad and gently mix in, reserving 2 T to garnish on the top.