Middle Eastern Black Lentil Salad | With Roasted Beetroot and Feta

Preheat the oven to 200 °C and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Peel the beetroot, cut into even ~1.5 cm cubes, then toss with 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, the dried thyme, half of the ground cumin, one teaspoon of salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Spread out on the baking sheet and roast for 25–30 minutes until golden brown and tender.

While the beetroot is roasting, rinse the beluga lentils thoroughly under cold water in a sieve. Place in a small saucepan with twice the volume of water and the remaining ground cumin, bring to a boil, then cover and simmer gently over low heat for 20 minutes until tender yet still pleasantly firm to the bite. Drain and allow to cool to room temperature.

Toast the walnuts and sesame seeds together in a dry skillet for 2–3 minutes until fragrant, then roughly chop the walnuts. Cut the pomegranate in half and remove the crunchy seeds. Slice the red onion into razor-thin half rings, and finely chop the fresh mint and parsley.