Inspiration for this recipe comes from the USA Dry Pea and Lentil Council whose booth we visited at the IACP (International Association of Culinary Professionals) Culinary Expo. Mom and I made sure to have a heaping salad lunch before parading through aisles of tempting treats, but the pea and lentil trail mix they were serving caught my eye. It was bright and colorful and would have fewer calories than trail mix filled with nuts and seeds. Ever on the lookout for healthy snacks, we grabbed their recipe book and made it a couple days later. I have savored this first beautiful batch; a handful in the afternoon with a cup of herbal tea gets me through until dinner.
We modified the recipe to make it easier, using lentils only. Based on your tastes (or your kids’) you can also swap the add-ins for other dried fruits, sweets, seeds, nuts, etc.
- 1 cup red lentils
- ¾ cup each: toasted sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, and mini semisweet chocolate chips
- Soak lentils in 2 cups of water in a medium bowl until rehydrated, about 1 hour. Drain and spread in rimmed 13- by 9-inch rimmed baking sheet.
- Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake lentils, stirring once or twice to promote even baking, until crisp, about 20 to 25 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
- Mix lentils with sunflower seeds, dried cranberries and chocolate chips. (Can be stored in an airtight container for several weeks.)
I think this is going to be a new addiction for me!
Definitely adding to the list!
It’s not often I ask for someone’s recipe, but this was one. If you’re looking for a healthy, great tasting snack, here it is!
I tried that trail mix. It was delish!! Thanks for posting this!
You most certainly had me wondering about this one…but it really sounds good. I am going to give it a try. Thank you.
How about sprouting them?
That sounds SO GOOD! We are obsessed with lentils in this house. Can’t wait to try it. Thanks Pam. Lu says “Hi!”
Tell Lu Pam says hi back! I think she’s really gonna like this trail mix.
fascinating. We roasted chickpeas and loved those, so I’m betting we’ll like these too. I think my daughter would love it in her lunchbox, too.
I’m allergic to tree nuts (almonds, walnuts, etc.) and get sick of making trail mixes with just peanuts and sunflower seeds. I’m definitely going to try this! I bet that roasting chickpeas would be good too.
I assume any color lentils would be okay here, don’t you?
Tried this today. Kids liked it. I was wondering if the lentils should be soft or crunchy as ours were popcorn-kernel-like crunchy. I soaked them for an hour plus and then baked at 325 convection for 20 minutes.
It should be crunchy as yours was today, but not hard as though you had never cooked it. You did it just right!
Wow. This sounds amazing. I am a bit obsessed with lentils… and trail mix. Winning!
I’ve already made this twice, replaced raisins for chocolate chips, and my two toddlers and I love it! Sprinkle it on yogurt, morning oatmeal! Yummmmm! Thanks!
I was just thinking that I needed a lentil recipe that doesn’t involve soup. What a fantastic idea!!!
Love this! It is really good mixed with quinoa for some crunch, or to replace croutons on a salad. Yum!!
I can’t keep up with making this!! My kids LOVE it and I make a double batch EVERY week!! Thanks for this great healthy snack!! It’s soooo yummy!!
Was excited to try this, but it did not work for me. I soaked the lentils over an hour and then roasted them per instructions, but they didn’t really get crunchy. Hard on the outside, gummy on the inside, just like what I imagine a raw lentil would be like. sighhhhhh