Cumin lentil dip in endive leaves
You’ll be glad you used freshly cooked lentils in this dish. Fairly delicate, lentils only take about 15 to 20 minutes to cook and retain their shape much better than  canned ones, which are too wet and mushy to be used in this dip. A prepared package of steamed lentils will also work for this dish—just use 1½ cups and skip the cooking step.
- 1 cup black or French green (du Puy) lentils, rinsed
- 2 cups water
- 2 shallots, chopped
- 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
- 1 heaping teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ cup Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup chopped fresh fennel fronds or flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
- Smoked salt and freshly ground pepper
- 3 whole endives
Instructions:
There is a time and place to serve a warm, cheesy appetizer, but it’s nice to have a few lighter options up your sleeve as well. Lighter, but still hearty with fiberpacked lentils, this dip is lovely served in endive leaves, as described here, but it is just as nice served on crackers or crostini.
- Put the lentils in a saucepan with the water and bring to a gentle boil over mediumhigh heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, uncovered, until the lentils are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain the lentils and set aside to cool to room temperature.
- Using a nonstick pan over medium heat, dry-sauté the shallots, without oil, until slightly charred and softened a bit, about 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and place in a bowl. Break up the fennel seeds with the back of a knife and add to the bowl with the shallots. Add the lentils, cumin, and yogurt and stir to combine. Add the fennel fronds and a few generous pinches of salt and pepper. Taste and adjust flavors as you wish.
- Gently pull the leaves from the endive at their stem. Fill the cavity of each endive leaf with a heaping spoonful of lentil dip and garnish with fresh fennel fronds.