Lazy Lentil Casserole

Last night, I had no idea what we were going to have for dinner. It was the night before our CSA pick-up, so nearly everything had been eaten and prepared from last week's box. I turned to lentils and rice -- the perfect ingredients for a last-minute lazy dish. I always have each in my pantry. Off to Google I went. After a quick google search for lentils and rice, I was most inspired by this recipe. I made some changes to accomodate what I had on hand, and this is what I created. We all really loved it. Honestly, it's the most simple and loved new recipes I've made in a loooooooong time. Aksel, my three-year-old, even exclaimed, "This is a yummy meal." He's way more interested in moving on from dinner then asking for seconds...but, he had more...then more. I paired it with two small heads of lettuce from our garden drizzled with balsamic vinegar, sunflower oil and salt. My husband later decided to add some blue tortilla chips, which we all gladly used to scoop up the casserole.

INGREDIENTS:
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
3 carrots, diced
1 kohlrabi, peeled and diced (or onion)
1 fennel bulb, diced (or celery)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup lentils, rinsed
1/2 cup short-grain brown rice, rinsed
2 to 2 1/2 cups of water
1 bouillon cube
1/2 teaspoon of salt

Heat olive oil over low to medium heat. Add carrots, kohlrabi and fennel. Measure and rinse lentils and rice. Add garlic and stir then add lentils and rice. Add water, salt and bouillon cube (I like to break it apart with my fingers as I add it to the pan). Cover and bring to a boil. Lower heat to create a gentle simmer. Simmer 30-40 minutes until lentils and rice are cooked and water is gone. Trick to testing to see if water is absorbed: gently tip pan to the side and see if water appears. If there is still water but the lentils and rice are cooked, just simmer with the lid off to help extra water evaporate.