Who would put together a dinner featuring these ingredients? You guessed it.

Beluga Lentils with Black Mushrooms and Mirepoix — note: the green beans was a last-minute add.

Roasted Leeks with Beet Horseradish Cream

This lovely California Carignane/Grenache blend was perfect with the earthiness of the Black Lentils.

Coda

Since this is an eclectic post anyway, I will take this opportunity to share two more photos. They are two examples of recent cooking that came out better than I had hoped, and they don’t fit anywhere else…

This was a mostly vegetarian Paella with Shrimp highlights. I cooked most of it outside in a covered gas grill, trying to get the rice a bit crispy.

Another of my beet salads, this time with Cannellini beans, Radicchio di Treviso, raw red onions, sweet peppers, and watermelon radish.