What do your meals look like (show me pictures)....

I just realized that this thread seems to be a continuation of the other one? It's a little confusing as to which one is supposed to be used but I thought I'd post here as well, just in case.

i made a lentil stew, served it into individual ramekins, and baked it with a polenta and cheddar topping. the stew on its own is 156 calories a bowl. with the polenta and cheese it's 329 a bowl. super filling low calorie meal with protein and fiber. definitely going

Lentil Soup

2 cups dried lentils (i used spanish brown lentils)
4 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 serrano chile, minced (could use a jalapeno as well)
1 cup shredded carrots (i coarsely chopped them so none of the pieces would be too long)
1 large celery stalk, diced
1 can diced tomatoes (i used garlic and onion petite cut but fire roasted would be a nice spin on it too)
3 cups vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder

Put the lentils, 4 cups of water, and a decent pinch of salt into a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes. At that point the lentils should be softened up a bit and they will have absorbed most of the water.

In a large pot heat olive oil, then saute the garlic, onions, and pepper in it. When softened add in the carrots and celery, cooking for a few minutes.

Add in all of the lentils (with any remaining water) and all of the other ingredients into the pot. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes. Depending on the sodium content of the things you use, feel free to salt and pepper more to taste.

When the soup is done cooking stick an immersion blender in the pot to puree 30-50% of the soup in order to make the "broth" nice and thick. If you don't have an immersion blender just transfer some of the soup to a regular blender and then puree it that way. You could skip the step all together if you're just eating the stew, but if you want the polenta topping you'll need it thick enough to bear a little weight - otherwise the polenta would probably just sink


Polenta Topping

1 cup polenta
3 cups water
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup shredded cheddar

I like to cook my polenta in the rice cooker but you can do it on the stove top as well. Cook this while you are simmering your soup, as it will take the same amount of time.

Combine polenta and water in rice cooker, along with a pinch of salt for flavor - I used a little less than a teaspoon. Cover and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the polenta is a soft porridge-like consistency. Stir in a tablespoon of butter at the end.

You could spoon the polenta right onto the soup, but I actually filled mine into a piping bag and squeezed it into the bowls that way. Once the soup ramekins are topped with polenta, sprinkle a bit of cheese over each one.

I baked them at 400F for 15 minutes, but popping it under the broiler would work just fine too I think

Acg67 is my mentor and this is dedicated to him. You can all blame him for this. My day thus far: