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White Wine Lentils with Mustard & Thyme

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5 from 29 votes

White wine lentils with mustard and thyme are creamy, flavourful, filling, simple to prepare, and only require about 10 ingredients. Totally made on the stove top, these lentils are great with a green salad and potatoes on the side.

An overhead shot of white wine lentils in a turquoise pot, garnished with parsley
A shot of Laura's open kitchen shelving with a bottle of wine, a glass of wine, and a paper bag on the counter.

I can’t quit it with the soft, cozy, and beige comfort food. And this week we’re adding wine for extra good measure. The simplicity of these white wine lentils and the fact that they stick to about 10 ingredients… it’s really doing it for me. I’m always tempted to add more layers of flavour (ie more ingredients), but the simple goodness of shallots, white wine, mustard, and thyme… it just works.

This recipe has tones of one of my most popular recipes: creamy French lentils with mushrooms and kale. This one is much simpler though.

The amount of ingredients is on the minimal end with these white wine lentils. With that in mind, I’d recommend using really great tasting wine and homemade vegetable stock if you can swing it! Although I tested a version with the Better Than Bouillon paste and we still really enjoyed it.

For an extra layer of comfort, I recommend serving these saucy lentils with something equally cozy. Something like: mashed potatoes, mashed cauliflower, soft polenta, or over some warm and fluffy rice or millet. If you want to be really extra, you could make my harvest vegetable mash with roasted garlic and fried dukkah.

In the photos here, I went with a quick cauliflower mash–so tasty. I just steamed some cauliflower florets until soft and combined them in a food processor with roasted garlic, a few bits of vegan butter, a splash of unsweetened almond milk, and lots of salt and pepper. Almost as satisfying as mashed potatoes haha. If you would like to see a more formal recipe for something like that on here, just let me know.

I know that emotions are riding extremely high for a lot of my American followers this week. I hope that you can steal away some moments for yourself and take any time that you need for rest or just to be away from a screen. This year has been.. a lot. There is comfort and strength to be found in nourishing ourselves, sharpening our collective tools, protecting our earth, and consistently showing up for each other in our communities. The work doesn’t stop when this week is over. Keep rising.

An overhead shot of the ingredients used for a stewed lentil dish. There's shallots, garlic, grainy and Dijon mustard, white wine, parsley, thyme, French lentils, and a cream made out of cashews.
An overhead shot of a single serving of white wine lentils ladled on top of some creamy mashed cauliflower.

White Wine Lentils with Mustard & Thyme

White wine lentils with mustard and thyme are creamy, flavourful, filling, simple to prepare, and only require about 10 ingredients.
5 from 29 votes
An overhead shot of white wine lentils in a turquoise pot, garnished with parsley
Print Recipe
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 25 mins
Total Time: 40 mins
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • ⅓ cup raw cashews, soaked for at least 2 hours and drained
  • 1 teaspoon nutritional yeast
  • ⅔ cup water
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 shallots, small dice
  • 1 tablespoon thyme leaves, minced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • ½ cup dry white wine
  • 1 cup French lentils, picked over and rinsed
  • 2 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 1 tablespoon grainy mustard
  • sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
  • ¼ cup flat leaf parsley leaves, chopped

Equipment

Notes

  • I recommend serving these lentils with either mashed potatoes (or as a filling for a baked potato), mashed cauliflower, soft polenta, or a fluffy heap of brown rice or millet. Lots of options!
  • Because the ingredient list is somewhat minimal here, I would really recommend homemade vegetable stock and using a white wine that you also enjoy drinking.
  • If you have a nut allergy, I would seek out an unsweetened non-dairy creamer that’s either oat or soy-based. You’ll need 3/4 cup!
  • I bet you’re wondering: Do I have to use two types of mustard? The answer is yes! You get little pops of flavour from the grainy mustard and the Dijon brings a lot of that strong mustard-y flavour.

Instructions

  • In an upright blender, combine the drained cashews, nutritional yeast, and water. Blend until completely smooth and creamy. Set aside.
  • Place a large saucepan or small soup pot over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add the oil and swirl it around. Add the shallots to the pan and stir. Stir and sauté the shallots until they are quite translucent and soft, about 6-7 minutes. Add the thyme and garlic to the pot and continue to sauté until the garlic is quite fragrant, about 1 minute.
  • Pour the wine into the pot and stir. Bring it up to a strong simmer and let the alcohol cook off for a minute or so. Then, add the lentils to the pot and stir. Add the vegetable stock to the pot and stir once more.
  • Bring the white wine lentils up to a boil and then lower the head to a simmer. Put a lid on the pot and let the lentils cook until tender and most of the liquid is absorbed, about 25 minutes. Check in on the lentils and stir them up here and there.
  • Once the lentils are tender and there's just enough liquid to cover them, add the Dijon mustard and grainy mustard and stir. Add the cashew cream that you made earlier to the pot and stir. Season the mixture liberally with salt and pepper.
  • Check the white wine lentils for seasoning and adjust if necessary. Then, stir in the chopped parsley. Serve hot!
Author: Laura Wright
Course: Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine: Dairy-free, Gluten-Free, Plant-Based, Vegan, Vegetarian
Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Keyword: cashews, fall, fall winter, French lentils, garlic, lentils, non-dairy cream, nutritional yeast, quick, red wine, shallots, vegetable stock, white wine
An overhead shot of a single serving of white wine lentils ladled on top of some creamy mashed cauliflower.
04/11/2020 (Last Updated: 04/11/2020)
Posted in: autumn, cashews, creamy, earthy, gluten free, main course, quick, refined sugar-free, salty, side dish, soup, spring, umami, vegan, winter
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