Honeyed Fig & Roasted Fingerling Potato Salad with Sumac and Black Lentils
Vegan / Gluten-Free
Welcome to fig season! With such short seasons each year (a couple weeks in June and then again in late summer), fresh figs are one of those elusive fruits we definitely want to celebrate while they last. And what better way than with honey roasted fig and fingerling potato salad?
Yup, life is sweet, so let’s celebrate with a spring-y, satiating salad truly worthy of the fig.
Honeyed figs spiced with sumac (a fragrant almost citrus-like spice from the middle east), roasted fingerling potatoes infused with fresh thyme and sumac, roasted peppers and oregano, black lentils, and soft pea shoots are set off with a light lemon thyme dressing and topped with juicy medjool dates.
I love this roasted fig and potato salad because it’s such a good balance of energies–potatoes provide familiarity; lentils provide protein and satiation; pea shoots provide vibrance and freshness; the lemon aids in digestion, and figs and dates provide some wholesome energy.
Make it for lunch. It’s nearly guaranteed to put a smile on your face.
Honeyed Fig & Roasted Fingerling Potato Salad with Sumac and Black Lentils
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
While the oven is preheating, bring 4 cups of water and 1/2 cup dry lentils to a rolling boil on the stove. Once the water has come to a boil, reduce the heat and allow the lentils to simmer for approximately 25 minutes or until “al-dente.” When finished, drain but do not rinse. Set aside.
While lentils cook, chop the figs. Add these to the baking tray and sprinkle with 3/4 teaspoon sumac and 2 teaspoons warm honey-water.
Then slice potatoes and add them to the baking tray. Toss with 1 teaspoon oil, fresh thyme from 4 sprigs, 1/2 teaspoon sumac, and flakey sea salt.
Slice and add red peppers to the baking tray. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon oregano.
Place the tray with all your fruits and veggies in the oven and allow them to roast for approximately 20 minutes or until the potatoes are soft throughout and slightly darkened around the edges and the honeyed figs appear sweet and bubbly.
Just before serving, prepare the dressing in the bottom of a large shallow serving bowl. Add warmed and thinned honey, lemon juice, sumac, cinnamon, and thyme and mix. Toss lentils, 3/4 of the pea shoots, and dressing together. Top with roasted figs, potatoes, and peppers. Garnish with remaining pea shoots and sliced dates.
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Serving Size 391
Servings 2
- Amount Per Serving
- % Daily Value *
- Total Fat 3g5%
- Saturated Fat 0g
- Potassium 1147mg33%
- Total Carbohydrate 79g27%
- Dietary Fiber 13g52%
- Protein 17g34%
- Vitamin A 33%
- Vitamin C 125%
- Calcium 41%
- Iron 23%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
While the oven is preheating, bring 4 cups of water and 1/2 cup dry lentils to a rolling boil on the stove. Once the water has come to a boil, reduce the heat and allow the lentils to simmer for approximately 25 minutes or until “al-dente.” When finished, drain but do not rinse. Set aside.
While lentils cook, chop the figs. Add these to the baking tray and sprinkle with 3/4 teaspoon sumac and 2 teaspoons warm honey-water.
Then slice potatoes and add them to the baking tray. Toss with 1 teaspoon oil, fresh thyme from 4 sprigs, 1/2 teaspoon sumac, and flakey sea salt.
Slice and add red peppers to the baking tray. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon oregano.
Place the tray with all your fruits and veggies in the oven and allow them to roast for approximately 20 minutes or until the potatoes are soft throughout and slightly darkened around the edges and the honeyed figs appear sweet and bubbly.
Just before serving, prepare the dressing in the bottom of a large shallow serving bowl. Add warmed and thinned honey, lemon juice, sumac, cinnamon, and thyme and mix. Toss lentils, 3/4 of the pea shoots, and dressing together. Top with roasted figs, potatoes, and peppers. Garnish with remaining pea shoots and sliced dates.
Ingredients
for the roasted veg…
- 150 grams (about 3 large) figs, sliced into sixths
- 3/4 teaspoon sumac
- 1 teaspoon honey, warmed and thinned with 1 teaspoon water to make more pourable
- 250 grams tri-colored fingerling potatoes, sliced lengthwise into quarters (or, if very small, halves) so that the slices are roughly equal in width and will roast at the same rate
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon sumac
- 1/2 teaspoon flakey sea salt (smoked salt is extra delish if you have it)
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1/2 red or orange bell pepper, sliced
- 1/4 teaspoon dry oregano
for the lentils…
- 1/2 cup black lentils
- 4 cups water
for the dressing…
- 1 teaspoon raw honey, warmed and thinned with 1 teaspoon water
- juice of half a lemon
- 1/2 teaspoon sumac
- 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme (leaves and small stems only – discard the thick woody stems)
- 1/8 teaspoon flakey sea salt
for the final touch…
- 60 grams lambs lettuce or pea shoots
- 1 medjool date, sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- While the oven is preheating, bring 4 cups of water and 1/2 cup dry lentils to a rolling boil on the stove. Once the water has come to a boil, reduce the heat and allow the lentils to simmer for approximately 25 minutes or until “al-dente.” When finished, drain but do not rinse. Set aside.
- While lentils cook, chop the figs. Add these to the baking tray and sprinkle with 3/4 teaspoon sumac and 2 teaspoons warm honey-water.
- Then slice potatoes and add them to the baking tray. Toss with 1 teaspoon oil, fresh thyme from 4 sprigs, 1/2 teaspoon sumac, and flakey sea salt.
- Slice and add red peppers to the baking tray. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon oregano.
- Place the tray with all your fruits and veggies in the oven and allow them to roast for approximately 20 minutes or until the potatoes are soft throughout and slightly darkened around the edges and the honeyed figs appear sweet and bubbly.
- Just before serving, prepare the dressing in the bottom of a large shallow serving bowl. Add warmed and thinned honey, lemon juice, sumac, cinnamon, and thyme and mix. Toss lentils, 3/4 of the pea shoots, and dressing together. Top with roasted figs, potatoes, and peppers. Garnish with remaining pea shoots and sliced dates.
Don’t Forget Dessert!
