Sweet roast red onion with lentils, watercress and blue cheese

Sweet Roast Red Onion Salad with Lentils, Watercress and Blue Cheese

Ingredients

• 3 red onions, peeled and cut into wedges
• 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
• 3 tbsp balsamic sherry vinegar
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 200g Puy green lentils
• 2 garlic cloves
• A small bunch fresh mint, leaves picked
• 2 heads pink chicory, trimmed and leaves kept whole
• 80g watercress
• 1 ripe pear
• 100g hazelnuts, toasted
• 100g any good blue cheese

For the dressing

• 2 tbsp balsamic sherry vinegar
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• Salt and pepper
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200C.
2. Arrange the onions in a layer on a baking tray lined with foil. Drizzle over 2 tbsp of pomegranate molasses, 3 tbsp of balsamic vinegar and 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil.
3. Season generously with salt and pepper, scrunch up and wrap with the foil and bake in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes before unwrapping, turning the oven down to 180C and roasting for a further 15 minutes until the onions are looking beautifully caramelized and soft.
4. Add all the dressing ingredients to a jam jar, secure the lid tightly and shake well to combine.
5. Meanwhile, cover the lentils with plenty of cold, salted water and, if you like, add a couple of garlic cloves, bashed once to break it open. Simmer for 20-25 minutes until the lentils are just tender but still holding their shape.
6. Drain the lentils and then while they are still warm add two big spoonfuls of the dressing and mix it through so they can absorb all the flavour.
7. Spoon the warm, dressed lentils on to the base of a large platter - making sure to fish out any garlic cloves if you used them. Add the soft caramelized red onions on top along with all the juices from the tray. Scatter over the picked mint leaves, roughly torn. Add the chicory leaves and watercress. Quarter, de-core and slice the pear and roughly chop the toasted hazelnuts.
8. Season the leaves in the bowl with salt and pepper, then drizzle over the remaining dressing and toss together.
9. Scatter over the hazelnuts and sliced pear, followed by chunks of the blue cheese.
10. Check the seasoning one last time and serve.