Instructions: It sounds complicated, but this dish is actually a snap to make. All the components can be prepared well ahead of time with almost no effort, then you just combine everything and bake it. The results are heavenly.

Preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly oil - or oil-spray - a shallow 9 x 13-inch casserole dish or a large oval gratin pan.

Heat the olive oil in a large, deep skillet or Dutch oven then add the butter and let it melt into the oil. Stir in the onion and salt, and cook, covered, over low heat for about 30 minutes, stirring often. The onions should be very soft and golden. Add the tomatoes, cover, and cook for another 15 to 20 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add all the remaining ingredients except the olives, and stir well.

Transfer to the prepared baking pan, cover tightly with foil,and bake for about 45 minutes, or until heated through.

Serve hot, topped with a scattering of sliced green olives, if desired

Yield: 6 servings

Cooking Time: 1 1/2 hours (15 minutes of work)

LENTILS: Red lentils cook more quickly and are a prettier color than the green or French varieties. That said you can use any kind of lentil for this dish, and it will come out fine. Both the lentils and the tomatoes can be prepared well ahead of time.

YIELDS: To get 8 cups of cooked lentils for this dish, begin with 4 cups dried. Rinse them well, place them in a pot with 10 cups of water, bring to a boil, then simmer until very soft (20 minutes for red lentils; 30 to 40 minutes for green or French). After you measure out the 8 cups needed for this recipe, you will probably have some left over. You can add the extra lentils to a vegetable soup, a salad, or some cooked grains.

TOMATOES: Roast about 6 plum or Roma tomatoes - or 3 large beefsteak tomatoes.

Roasted Tomatoes : The best types of tomatoes to roast are plum (Roma)

tomatoes and large beefsteak tomatoes that are not too ripe. Cut out the stems first, then place the whole tomato (skins intact) on a lightly oiled baking tray. Preheat the oven to 400F, and roast the tomatoes for 30 to 40 minutes. Riper tomatoes will roast more quickly. If desired, you can drain off juices intermittently during the roasting process, enabling the tomatoes to cook from inner, rather than from expelled, liquid. (The latter causes them to stew, rather than roast.) Cool to room temperature, then remove skins. Seed and mince them. Then measure out 1 cup to use in this dish. If you are short on time, you can substitute 1 cup canned diced tomatoes.

SERVE Soft Lentils with any kind of plain grain or pasta - or simply with bread and a salad.

This is wonderful.

If you would like to email yourself the recipe for later use, or share the recipe with your friends or family, enter the email addresses below and this recipe will be emailed to you and others as well.