French Lentils and Brown Rice

I love lentils, the texture, the earthy flavour, and the way they smell like tea when they are cooking.  I don't make them nearly enough.  The other night I was trying to decide what to have for dinner, I found some french lentils in the cupboard and some brown and wild rice so I googled around a bit for a recipe.  I didn't have all the ingredients for any one recipe so I decided to go it on my own.  This is what I came up with and it was just what I was looking for, simple, rustic, and filling.

French Lentils and Brown Rice


1/3 cup onion diced
1 or 2 carrots diced
1/2 cup dried french lentils
1 or 2 glugs of olive oil
1/4 tsp celery seed
pinch of cloves
salt and pepper
1/2 cup brown and wild rice mix


Cook rice according to package directions.

Saute onions and carrots in olive oil for 2-3 minutes.
Add celery seeds and cloves and continue to cook until soft and beginning to caramelize.
Add lentils and add about 1 1/4 cups water (enough to cover).  Bring to a simmer.
Season with salt and pepper and continue to simmer until no liquid remains (about 35 minutes).
Makes 2 generous portions as a main dish.