Warm Summer Vegetable-Lentil Salad with Lemon-Oregano Dressing

If your vegetable crisper and produce basket look anything like mine, recipes that use an abundance of seasonal vegetables are in heavy rotation. I developed this warm summer vegetable-lentil salad after a friend asked if we had any vegetarian lentil dishes on the blog. We had a few cold weather recipes, but I wanted to create one that used corn, zucchini, and tomato.

The vegetable-lentil combo is delicious on it’s own, but this tangy, flavorful dressing brings it all together to make a hearty, filling, and flavorful summer salad that I can’t get enough of. I keep a tupperware of cooked lentils in the fridge as well as a mason jar of the lemon-oregano dressing, so a good lunch is never far off.

Warm Summer Vegetable-Lentil Salad with Lemon-Oregano Dressing

 

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by: Three Many Cooks

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• ¼ cup lemon juice
• ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons each: chopped fresh oregano and parsley leaves
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large onion, cut into medium dice
• 2 ears of corn, kernels cut from the cob (about 2 cups)
• 1 medium-large zucchini cut into medium dice (about 2 cups)
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved and lightly salted
• 3 cups cooked lentil (see directions above)
• Salt and ground black pepper

Instructions

1. To cook ½ pound of lentils (which yields about 3 cups) bring 2½ cups of water and ½ pound of lentils to boil in a covered 10-inch skillet. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook until water is almost absorbed and lentils are just tender, about 12 minutes. Turn off heat and let stand a few minutes. Proceed with recipe.
2. For the dressing, puree lemon juice, ½ cup oil, oregano, parsley, garlic and 2 tablespoons of water in a blender; set aside.
3. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. When wisps of smoke start to rise from the pan, add onions; saute for 2 minutes. Add zucchini; saute for another 2 minutes. Add corn; saute for another 2 minutes, then tomatoes; saute for another 2 minutes. Add lentils; cook until heated through, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. Serve, with dressing passed separately.

Notes

You will likely have leftover dressing for another salad later in the week.

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