My First Lentil Soup
January 4, 2008
The fast inspired me to try out new recipes that I don’t normally do in my cooking experiments. This lentil soup was heaven-sent. Found this on http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/lively-up-yourself-lentil-soup-recipe.html. Its my first lentil soup ever made! Very easy & pretty fast! I made some modifications to the original recipe. Here’s my adaption.
Ingredients:
2 cups black beluga lentils (or green French lentils), picked over and rinsed
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 cup water (or vegetable broth which you can buy pre-packed organic vegetable broth or make your own)
3 cups of a big leafy green (chard, kale, etc), rinsed well, deveined, finely chopped
a pinch of saffron (30-40 threads)
4-5 bay leaves
3 red potatoes, chopped into cubes
To make vegetable broth:
1 bunch of celery
2 sweet corn, chopped
4 carrots, peeled
2 yellow onions, peeled
12 cups of water
Bring the water to a boil in a large pot. Add the vegetables into the pot. Once the water boils again, reduce the fire to small-medium. Cook for an hour at least till the water reduces in half. You can prepare the broth in advance and refrigerate for use later.
To make the soup:
Bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a large saucepan, add the lentil, and cook for 20 minutes, or until tender. Drain and set aside.
Heat the oil in a heavy soup pot over medium heat, then add the onion, salt, saffron and bay leaves and saute until tender, a couple minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, lentils, potatoes and soup broth (amount depending on how thick & hearty you want) and continue cooking for a few more minutes, letting the soup come back up to a simmer. Stir in the chopped greens, and wait another minute. Taste and adjust the seasoning if need be. Ladle into bowls and serve with bread.
