Red Lentil and Quinoa Dahl

This dish has always been a hit with my daughter. I first served it to her when she was around 7 months and she has been regularly enjoying it ever since! It is super easy to make, using store cupboard ingredients, and produces a tasty, savoury dish but without any salt. I always keep portions of this dish in my freezer because even if my daughter is feeling poorly or teething, I know that she will eat some of this nutritious dahl. This yielded four portions for my daughter.

Ingredients

• Small glug of oil (olive, nut or any other)
• 1/4 onion, chopped finely
• 1 small garlic clove, chopped or crushed
• 1 carrot, chopped into small chunks
• 150g red lentils
• 50g quinoa
• 1 heaped tsp tomato puree
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

Instructions

1. Fry the onion, garlic and carrot in oil for a few minutes.
2. Wash the lentils and then add them to the pan together with 500ml water, the tomato puree and cumin. Stir, bring to the boil and simmer with the lid on for around 5 minutes. The lentils should be partly cooked at this stage.
3. Add the quinoa, 100 ml of water and simmer for another 10-15 minutes. Stir occasionally.
4. This dahl is ready when both the lentils and quinoa are cooked. The consistency is like a thick soup but you could add more water if you preferred to have a more fluid dish. I sometime serve this dahl with grated cheese melted on top.

Nutritional Highlights: This dish is a good source of both protein and iron. Lentils are a very good source of fibre and a good source of protein and iron. Quinoa are also a good source of protein and bring magnesium to the dish. First served at: 7 months A-L rating: A-L always happily eats this dish. She just seems to love it! Freezer friendly? Yes, freezes well Adult adaption: I serve this as a complete meal for my daughter but would recommend additional dishes for adults (such as curries and rice). That said, it is an easy to digest, comforting food so it may be nice for those times when a quick and light meal is required