Warm Lentils with beets, wilted chard (or beet greens), goat cheese and fresh herbs. A simple tasty vegetarian meal using fresh farmer’s market ingredients!
One of the first things to appear at our farmers market this spring was the beautiful rainbow chard. I love all the colorful stems and its tangy flavor. Here it’s paired with warm lentils, roasted beets and a little goat cheese, becoming a tasty nutritious supper.
Chard does wonders to somber lentils, brightening them up, and bringing out the best in them. It’s a good marriage. Plus, I really love the feeling of using up all the pulses sitting my pantry, and pairing them with something fresh and seasonal. A good balance. Economical too.
To start, roast the beets and cook the lentils. They will both take about 30 minutes. If in a pinch, many grocery stores these days offer beets that are already roasted and lentils that are already cooked.
Saute onion and garlic, then add a mound of chard. About 4 cups packed. Gently wilt. You could also chop up your beet greens and wilt them instead of the chard.
Add 2 cups of cooked lentils.
Add the roasted beets and season with salt, pepper and just a little balsamic.
Sprinkle with goat cheese and gently fold it in so becomes warm and creamy.
Toss in fresh basil, thyme or Italian parsley.
Divide among two bowls and enjoy.
I hope you enjoy this simple hearty meal of Warm Lentils, Beets and wilted chard! Tasty, filling, healthy and delicious too.
xoxo
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Warm Lentils with Wilted Chard, Roasted Beets and Goat Cheese
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 40
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 2-3
- Category: vegetarain, main
- Method: Stove-top
- Cuisine: Northwest
Description
A simple tasty vegetarian meal- Warm lentils with wilted chard, roasted beets and goat cheese- satisfying, filling and delicious!
Ingredients
- 3–4 beets ( enough for 2 people)
- 2 cups cooked lentils
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 a red onion- diced
- 3 garlic cloves- rough chopped
- 4 cups (packed) swiss chard or rainbow chard- chopped (or sub beet greens, baby spinach)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, more to taste
- 1/4 cup goat cheese crumbles
- 2–3 tablespoons fresh basil, or Italian parsley.
Instructions
Preheat oven to 425 F. Scrub and trim beets and cut into ½ inch slices or wedges. Place on a foil lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and roast until tender, about 25- 30 minutes.
If cooking lentils, place ¾ cup dried lentils in a small pot and cover with 3 inches of water and a pinch salt. Bring to a boil, cover and turn heat down to a simmer, cook about 25-30 minutes or until tender but still hold their shape. Drain.
In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium high heat. Add diced onion and saute 3-4 minutes. Turn heat down to medium, add garlic and cook 2 more minutes, until golden and fragrant.
Lower heat to medium low. Add chard and gently wilt, just slightly, about 2-3 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Add 2 cups cooked lentils to the skillet, gently folding them in and warming. Season again with salt and pepper.
Add beets and splash with 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar. Let vinegar cook down for just a couple of minutes so it’s not so acidic. Taste, add more vinegar if you like, cooking it down. Sprinkle with goat cheese and herbs. Taste again, if it tastes bland it most likely needs salt. Serve immediately.
Notes
Makes 2 extra hearty portions.
2 cups cooked lentils is about ¾ cup dry.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 487
- Sugar: 22.3 g
- Sodium: 322.8 mg
- Fat: 14.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 70 g
- Fiber: 23.3 g
- Protein: 23.2 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Super nice recipe, I found mine needed a little sweetness lift so added a tiny bit of honey to the pan and boom, (maybe i added too much vinegar) so good..
Glad you enjoyed this Chris! I love hearing when and how people adapt to taste, great job!
Thanks for this super tasty and very colourful dish – it’s so pretty! The beets I had were quite small so I added in some sweet potato to the roasting pan which was really good (it did add some sweetness to the dish). I overcooked the lentil (lost track of what I was doing!) but it still tasted great. I added walnuts on top for some texture. I would have liked to put in a lot more balsamic but I ran out after about 1.5 tbsp so I added more salt and lemon juice for an extra zing and it came out really good! I will definitely be making this again!
Glad you enjoyed this Morgan!
I’m all new to this website. Does anyone have T2 Diabetes? IF so, when eating these lentil recipes, does it spike your blood sugars. I am looking for nutritious and easy recipes and these look so good.
Everyone responds differently to various carbs. But I’ve found that when I pair carbs like lentils, with a little fat or other protein, it will help flatten that glucose spike. A drizzle of olive oil, can do do the trick, plus the goat cheese is helping here.
Thank you
I was at first a little hesitant, but oh boy, it was so simple yet so rewarding and delicious and nourishing. I used kale, and also added a poached egg for extra protein. Definitely will be making this very often
Glad you enjoyed this Dan!
This was good and I was happy to find a recipe to use my rainbow chard and beets that I received in my CSA box last week.
I accidentally got cheese that is closer to Brie than goat cheese. It was still good but a soft and tangy cheese like goat would have been great! I think feta would be a good option as well.
Definitely add fresh herbs. I used parsley and it helps give it a little more zip.
And follow the directions to salt at each step. It will definitely make a difference!
Appreciate your thoughts Beth!
I love lentils and beetroot, it’s so cool that this recipe compliments both so well. I didn’t have spinach so I used leeks and spring onion instead. Rocket to garnish with vegan almond cheese. It looked exquisite and tasted delish and the family was very impressed. Thank you for another great recipe.
Thanks so much Gen and glad this worked for you!
So good! I used black lentils and spinach (I couldn’t find chard) plus some yoghurt and garlic dressing to eat with it. The finished dish was really pretty. We will definitely be having this again Thank you 😁.
glad you enjoyed this Helen!
I thought this meal was amazing. I’ve made it three times within the past year. If you make it right, you’ll get the perfect combo of flavor that compliments one another. And it’s nutrient dense!
Everything tasted good on it’s own but together it was a disappointment 🙁
Hummmm…not sure what went wrong here Parisa, but sorry about that! Was it too vinegary? Sometimes the type of balsamic can make a difference- some younger ones can be quite acidic and ruin a dish.
I was skeptical that this would actually be good when I saw how simple the recipe was. But BOY was I wrong. This has to be one of my favourite recipes I have EVER tried, I’m so shook! The only tweaks I made were adding an entire red onion and 5 cloves of garlic instead but other than that this recipe is absolutely DELICIOUS!
Awesome Meghan! Glad you liked this!
So. Good.
Amazing! I’ve always really wanted to love lentils but aside from enjoying them in heavily spiced curries and soup, I’ve always found them too earthy for my taste. It’s a good thing I didn’t give up on them because they really shine in this recipe. The sweetness of the beets and the tang of balsamic complement that earthiness in the lentils beautifully!
P.S I got a pro tip from my mom who LOVES cooking with beets. Use the beet greens instead of, or with your swiss chard. Wilted beet greens taste remarkably like swiss chard and you’ll use the whole beet!
Beautiful idea Clare! I noted the recipe about using the beet greens!
This was delicious. I was surprised how tasty it was.
So delicious! Made it with baby spinach instead of wilted chard. The goat cheese gave that little bit of extra.