BBQ Lentils

I hate having leftovers sitting in my fridge.  I look in there and I see money being thrown away because I know it will just be shoved to the back and forgotten until I get in a rage because I can't fit anything else into the fridge and start emptying the mason jars of whatever was for dinner last week.  

I must be proactive.  I have to make a plan to USE this awesome, organic, quality food, before it is no longer awesome or quality (it would still be organic).  My husband, Rob had made a tasty greek salad with green lentils, dill, tomatoes, cucumbers, and vegan mayo (and a bunch of other stuff, I don't know about) but had only used about half the lentils he had cooked.  Lentils can be tricky.  Our daughter isn't the biggest fan if they aren't very flavorful, she says they taste like paste plain, but I don't remember her ever eating paste, so I think this is just something she has heard.  

So it's lunch time and I look in the fridge and see (AHHH Leftovers!) some cole slaw Rob had made 2 days ago sitting next to those plain ol' lentils in their jar.  Looking none too appetizing, I might add.  The cole slaw triggered a memory of a thick open faced BBQ sandwich I used to order consistently from a local smoke house, but haven't had in (what seems like) forever since given up meat, dairy, gluten, everything.  So I browsed through an old barbecue book and mixed together this sauce with ingredients in the fridge.  It was so easy and delicious, it doesn't even have to wait for more leftover lentils to make again.  

BBQ Lentils Recipe: About 2 cups of leftover cooked green lentils (you can make them fresh as well: Boil 3 cups of water with 1 cup of rinsed lentils for about 20 minutes, until tender)... In a sauce pan I sauteed a med onion, diced with 2 peppers (I used one yellow, one orange) with 2 crushed garlic gloves and a little bit of water. Once soft, I added 2 Tbsp each: maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, and tomato paste. Then I stirred in 2 tsp chili powder, oregano, and yellow mustard (from the fridge, otherwise 1/2 tsp ground mustard). Then I transfered it all to a blender (or submersion blender cup) and blend until almost smooth. Put back in pan, stir in cooked lentils and heat. Serve over your favorite coleslaw (Rob makes a vegan southern slaw that is tangy and not too sweet). We used large romaine lettuce leaves as wraps, but any bun, bread, wrap would work.