Curried Lentil, Wild Rice and Orzo Salad

In my post-cleanse euphoric state, I decided to pull out some old & forgotten cookbooks in the hopes of re-energizing our weekly meal plan. I went waaay back to a cookbook my mum purchased (and I clearly "borrowed" permanently) in the late 90s. My dad was fairly young (early 40s) when he had a heart attack in 1990. This event rocked our family & our diet and gone were our traditional British dinners and replaced with healthy curries, stir fries & salads. After working with a dietician, my mum's cookbook collection was expanded to include those by the Heart & Stroke Foundation, Canadian Diabetes Association and the Canadian Medical Association.

This recipe is from Anne Lindsay's New Light Cooking and will definitely be added to our rotation. It makes a good sized portion and can be kept for up to 2 days.

Curried Lentil, Wild Rice and Orzo Salad

1/2 cup wild rice

2/3 cup green or brown lentils

1/2 cup orzo pasta

1/2 cup currants

1/4 cup chopped red onion

1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted

Dressing:

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

2 tbsp water

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp EACH granulated sugar, salt and ground coriander

1/4 tsp EACH turmeric, paprika, ground nutmeg and ground cardamom

Pinch EACH cinnamon, cloves and cayenne pepper

1/4 cup vegetable oil

In separate pots of boiling water, cook wild rice (35-40 minutes), lentils (25-30 minutes) and orzo (about 5 minutes) or until each is tender but not mushy. Drain well & transfer to a large bowl. Add currants and onion. Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, water, cumin, mustard, sugar, salt, coriander, turmeric, paprika, nutmeg, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and cayenne. Whisk in oil. Pour over rice mixture and toss gently. Let cool completely before covering & refrigerating for at least 4 hours.

Serve sprinkled with almonds.

*Raisins can be substituted for currants (this is what I used).

*Long grain converted rice can be substituted for orzo (cooked for about 20 minutes).

Lindsay, A. (1998). Curried Lentil, Wild Rice and Orzo Salad. Anne Lindsay's New Light Cooking. p. 50.