Lentil/Split Pea recipe

Elizabeth, I did not forget your request for this recipe; I just had to double check with Thomas. Despite my best efforts, he's the chef in the family. I can bake, and I do try to cook, but if he's around and has the time, he's the one making dinner.

Of course, he doesn't exactly follow a recipe, but has a few things that he pretty much adds every time and adds others as we have them/he thinks of it.

Start with one bag of dried lentils or split peas. Max is kind enough to model the size I'm referring to:
We'll usually empty the bag in a bowl and fill with cold water about an inch or two and let the dried legumes soak for a few hours (or a workday). This isn't necessary, but makes the cooking time go by faster!

In a giant pot, he adds:

• the soaked lentils, including the water they were soaking in
• one rectangle of frozen acorn squash
• olive oil
• dried herbs
• chopped onion
• garlic

Stir pretty frequently until the acorn squash has completely unfrozen. Let the concoction simmer until the lentils or split peas are at the consistency you like. You may need to add a bit more water.

If we've pre-soaked the legumes, this usually takes around 40 minutes to cook; if not, it's closer to an hour. Stir occasionally.

After parceling it into bowls, we add some sour cream and other spices and mix it all together. Yum! This usually makes enough for both of us to have for dinner, plus enough for me for lunch for one day.

Other things we have added include sliced mushrooms, carrots, frozen cranberries, and dried cranberries. Plus other things, but I can't remember what! I'd like to try adding walnuts, but Thomas thinks that sounds gross. It's a super easy go-to meal since we always keep these ingredients on hand.

Max, with the split pea version:And the lentil version, before we mixed the sour cream in:Finally, since the greys are not great sharers, it usually works best to offer them their own bowls: