Artichoke and Lentil Stew

This recipe came from here, and I pretty much followed it. I sauteed the onion in oil instead of stock, and one of my cans of tomatoes was crushed. I added a little extra water. And I ran out of red lentils, so I subbed a little bit of brown lentils and split peas. LOL, if you can believe that, that's what I consider "I pretty much followed it". It was very easy and very tasty. Lots of leftovers.

I served it with Mark Bittman's easy flat bread, which was more cracker-like (no yeast).

Lentil Artichoke Stew:
1 Tbsp canola oil: 0.04
1 onion: 0.20
3 cloves garlic: 0.15
2 tsp cumin: 0.10
1 tsp coriander: 0.05
2 cups water
1 cup red lentils (or a mix of lentils): 0.75
1 28 oz can fire roasted tomatoes: 2.29
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes: 1.00
1 bay leaf: 0.05
1 can artichoke hearts, chopped: 1.99
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper: 0.02
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper: 0.02
lemon juice and/or zest: 0.10
total: $6.76 for about 12 cups, or $0.56 per cup.

Saute diced onion in oil until soft. Add cumin, coriander, garlic, and saute 1-2 more min. Add lentils and water and bring to boil. Add remaining ingredients through crushed red pepper. Cover and simmer until done (I simmered for 45 mins). Add salt, pepper, and lemon at the end.

Bittman's Flat Bread
1 cup whole wheat flour: 0.27
2 Tbsp olive oil: 0.20
2 Tbsp canola oil: 0.08
1 tsp salt
1.5 cups water
1/2 onion: 0.10
pinch dried rosemary: 0.10

total: $0.75 for about 12 slices, or $0.06 per slice.

Mix whole wheat flour and salt. Whisk in water so there aren't any lumps. Let sit for at least 30 min.

Heat oven to 450F. Put oils, sliced onion, and rosemary in the bottom of a pan (I used a metal pan about 6x9). Put in oven for 5 min. Remove from oven, stir, and pour in batter. It will look like pancake batter, but thinner.

Bake 35-40 min.

The best part about tonight's dinner is that both pieces had a lot of time where they worked on their own. Even though I was home 1/2 day (with a sick kid), a tasty meal with not a lot of work is key.