kale chips

Ok, this is really simple. All you need is some kale, some oil, and some salt.
1. Wash the kale, and rip the leaves off the rib in the middle, and break them up into chip-sized pieces. If there are thick ribs running through the sides of the leaves, you can remove these too.
2.Put the leaves in a bowl. Pour some oil in. Toss the leaves around so they are all coated. Liberally sprinkle with salt, and toss around again.
3. Put the leaves on a single layer on a cookie sheet (I lined mine with foil for easy cleanup). Bake at 300ºF for about 15-20 minutes, or until crispy. Try one to see if it is crispy enough for you. If they are still a little chewy in the middle, then bake a few more minutes.

Potato, rice, rice, potato, carrot, parsnip, and lentil stew

Ok, so I had a bunch of veggies that I needed to use up, and I was feeling pretty lazy. Soup is the obvious choice to make in this situation, because you can just throw a bunch of stuff in a pot and let it cook.

10 cups water
4 veggie bouillon cubes (each makes 2 cups broth)
1 large can crushed tomato with basil
1 large clove garlic, minced
some olive oil
1 cup rice
3 handfuls of lentils, probably about 1 cup
about 3-4 medium potatoes, cut into bite sized pieces
3 carrots and 1 parsnip, cut into bite sized pieces
1 leek, chopped up (you could use an onion instead)
a dash of cayenne pepper (optional)

1. Pour olive oil in a large soup pot. add the garlic, leek, carrots, parsnip, potato, and rice. Turn heat to high, and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly.
2. Add water and bouillon cubes, stir. Reduce heat to low, add the lentils in, and cover.
3. Simmer until the rice and lentils are tender to your liking.

The next day, it was even thicker. And my boyfriend said it was even better with a little bit of hot sauce added.