• The ins and outs of the aubergine, or as we usually call it, the eggplant.
• Induction heating: Super quick, with much less heat and no accidentally burned apparel.
• Ouch! Le Petit Castor gets a bad review -- quite packed, with sloppy food.
• Recipe: Indian-Spiced Lentil Stew
• Wines: Alamos 2007 Chardonnay, D'Arenberg The Stump Jump 2007 White, Gran Toc Hill Reserva 2002, Terranoble Gran Reserva 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon, Watershed 2004 Shiraz

Lentils may be in short supply, especially if you want to buy them in bulk, but for the average home cook, the odds are good that you're not eating lentils every day and a cup or two should still be easy enough to come by. Lentils are high in protein and provide a huge advantage over beans in soup because they do not have to be soaked in advance and have a relatively short cooking time. This recipe comes from Cooking Light and is an easy to make, satisfying dish.

I used black lentils to make this soup, but you should be able to substitute any kind you have, such as red or yellow, and still come up with a great result. I also opted to omit the cilantro, since I don't like it to have a really strong presence in dishes, and did not puree the soup. The dish was slightly spicy and very good, especially considering that it only took about one hour to make!

Lentils fall into that category of staple foods that includes rice and flour. They don't generally merit much thought because they are prevalent, yet they make up a crucial part of the diet of many in southern Asia and are popular anywhere Indian food is sold. At least, they didn't receive much thought until the Indian government banned lentil exports, which has resulted in shortages in other parts of the world, including the US. As a result, lentil prices are going up and some restaurants are turning to lentils from other countries, though "there are complaints from discerning customers who bemoan inferior quality."

The dried beans are such a staple that they are often eaten several times a day, especially by Indian vegetarians, so people have turned to hoarding them while still paying increasingly high prices. Until the ban in India is repealed, it doesn't seem like prices will be coming down any time soon. Fortunately, dried lentils keep for quite some time, so if you like lentil soups in the fall, it might be worth picking up a bag or two at the store, just in case.