Place lentils and water in a saucepan and bring to boil; then cover and cook over medium heat for 30 minutes or until lentils are cooked. Drain, place in a food processor, and process briefly. Add remaining ingredients, except olive oil and honey, and process into a paste.

Place in a greased (5X8inch) loaf pan; then sprinkle with olive oil. Cover with aluminum foil and bake in an oven preheated to 350F, for 45 minutes. Remove aluminum foil and brush with honey if desired, then bake for 10 minutes more.

Serve, sliced, hot or cold.

This made three 5X8X4 inch loaves which we divided into 6 slices each.

Each (app 4 ounce) slice contains an estimated:

Cals: 195, FatCals: 48, TotFat: 5g

SatFat: 2g, PolyFat: 1g, MonoFat: 2g

Chol: 39mg, Na: 272mg, K: 386mg

TotCarbs: 28g, Fiber: 9g, Sugars: 4g

NetCarbs: 19g, Protein: 10g

NOTES: For a spicier version you can add some chili powder to the spices. The nutrition is not effected by this addition. You can add texture and fiber to this by adding about a cup of finely shredded vegetable (broccoli, or carrot) to the paste before placing it in the loaf pan.

Adapted from: "Classic Vegetarian Cooking from the Middle East and North Africa"

by Habeeb Salloum