Couscous and Lentils with Goat Cheese

Here is a great, one-pot, quick, healthy and hearty meat-free meal to help you start your week off right. Lentils are a great meat alternative because they are packed with protein, fiber, iron and B vitamins, and they are also really tasty, cheap and quick-cooking. They are many different types of lentils; all are extremely versatile and go well in soups or with grains.  I chose to cook up some lentils with whole wheat couscous tonight, which is also really quick and easy to make. And I made a big pot so I have plenty of leftovers to eat throughout the week- yes!

COUSCOUS WITH LENTILS AND GOAT CHEESE

Ingredients
1 tblsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tblsp chopped onion
2 tblsp chopped carrot
2 tblsp chopped celery
salt/pepper
1.5 cup lentils (I used a mix of brown, red and yellow)
1 cup whole wheat couscous
4-5 cups water
goat cheese

Directions
1. Heat olive oil in pot, stir in garlic, onions, celery, carrots and salt/pepper and cook for a few minutes until softened.
2. Add lentils and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer and cook, covered, for about 15-20 minutes until lentils are soft.
3. Add couscous to the same pot and cook for an additional 5 minutes until couscous absorbs the remainder of the water and becomes soft. (If there is excess water, simply drain it out; and just add more water if there is not enough).

4. Once mixture is nice and fluffy and all the water is absorbed, serve a bowl and top with goat cheese.  ENJOY!