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Vegan French Lentil Salad with Arugula and Cashew Cheese

French Lentil Salad

This French lentil salad with arugula and cashew cheese is an elegant meal for lunch or dinner that is loaded with protein and fabulous flavor. 

Prep Time 50 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 4
Author Tess Masters

Ingredients

herbed cashew cheese:

salad:

  • 1/3 cup (80ml) extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 small shallot, minced
  • 1 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon champagne vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 2 1/2  cups (375g) cooked Le Puy green lentils, drained well
  • 2 cups (60g) firmly packed baby arugula leaves
  • 1 cup (115g) thinly sliced radishes
  • 1 cup (50g) chopped endive
  • 1 cup (105g) sliced cucumber
  • 1/4 cup (12g) chopped fresh dill
  • 1/3 cup (35g) toasted walnuts, chopped
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 cup (60g) Herbed Cashew Cheese (above)

Instructions

  1. To make the cashew cheese, throw the cashews in a food processor or high-speed blender. Add the nutritional yeast, salt, herbes de Provence, pepper, lemon juice, and garlic. Pulse a few times to break the cashews down until they have a wet, coarse, mealy texture.
  2. With the motor running, drizzle in 2 tablespoons of the water. Now it’s time for some kitchen intuition: keep adding water, stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides of the work bowl, until the mixture has a good consistency. It should be similar to thick hummus—a little coarse, but smooth and spreadable. You may not need all of the remaining 2 tablespoons of water. (If using a blender, start on a low speed and gradually increase to high speed as you add the water, using a plunger attachment the entire time to keep the mixture blending.)
  3. Taste and adjust the seasonings as desired. Stored in a covered container in the fridge, the cheese will keep for about 5 days.
  4. To make the salad, grab a small bowl or measuring cup, and whisk together the olive oil, shallot, salt, lemon juice, vinegar, and mustard until evenly blended.
  5. In a large bowl, stir together the lentils, arugula, radishes, endive, cucumber, and dill. Drizzle evenly with the dressing, then toss or stir until all the ingredients are evenly coated. Stir in the walnuts and season with black pepper to taste. Dot the top of the salad with small bits of the cashew cheese (about 1⁄2 teaspoon each).
  6. Serve the salad right away, or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Recipe Notes

Reprinted with permission from Food52 Vegan, by Gena Hamshaw, copyright © 2015, published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.  

Photograph copyright © 2015 by James Ransom