From The Boston Globe Magazine, Sheryl Julian and Julie Riven, 2005 March 27.
Serves 4.
In a saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Stir in the lentils, turn down the heat, and cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until the lentils are tender but still have some bite.
Meanwhile, in a bowl, whisk together the salt, pepper, and vinegar until the salt dissolves. Whisk in the mustard. Add the oil in a thin steady stream, whisking until the dressing emulsifies.
When the lentils are cooked, drain them into a colander. Transfer the lentils to a bowl. Spoon half of the dressing over the lentils while they are hot. Stir gently. Let them sit until they are just warm.
Add the onion, scallions, and parsley. Stir and add enough dressing to coat the lentils.
Notes: Haven't tried it yet.
The Bulwer-Lytton fiction contest is held ever year at San Jose State Univ. by Professor Scott Rice. It is held in memory of Edward George Earle Bulwer-Lytton (1803-1873), a rather prolific and popular (in his time) novelist. He is best known today for having written "The Last Days of Pompeii." Whenever Snoopy starts typing his novel from the top of his doghouse, beginning "It was a dark and stormy night..." he is borrowing from Lord Bulwer-Lytton. This was the line that opened his novel, "Paul Clifford," written in 1830. The full line reveals why it is so bad: It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents -- except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up the streets (for it is in London that our scene lies), rattling along the housetops, and fiercely agitating the scanty flame of the lamps that struggled against the darkness.
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