![2016: the International Year of the Pulse (including bean)](https://i0.wp.com/blogs.oregonstate.edu/linuspaulinginstitute/files/2016/01/bean-salad-via-cookbookman17-flickr.jpg?resize=398%2C267)
When Gerd Bobe, a principal investigator with the Linus Pauling Institute, makes lentils he serves them with a dash of lemon vinegar and sugar.
“It’s the traditional German style,” he says, “and it makes this delicious sweet/tart flavor.” His favorite dish is lentil soup, with a bit of chopped Polish sausage, carrots, onions, and potatoes thrown in.