This lentil soup recipe is a modified version of one I found online several months ago. I wanted to link to the original recipe but I can't find it. The original recipe gave some very bad advice, telling you to add tomatoes to the soup in the beginning. If you have any experience cooking beans then you know that anything acidic or salty should not be added to dried legumes until they reach their desired consistency. If you don't have experience cooking dried beans that is really the only thing you need to remember about them, it's pretty hard to mess beans up just so long as you don't stop their cooking by adding acid or salt. Perhaps the original recipe was taken down because no one could get their lentil to soften, I don't know. This is a delicious, hearty soup for the end of winter and beginning of spring. I like to serve the soup with fresh baked whole wheat bread.
This recipe makes four servings.
2 large Carrots
1 Small Yellow Onion
1t Cumin
1c Lentils
1 14oz can Diced Tomatoes
2c Chicken Broth
1 50z bag of Baby Spinach
Salt and Pepper to taste
1. Chop Carrot and Onion.
2. Saute Carrot and Onion for 5 minutes in the bottom of your soup pot. After 5 minutes add Cumin and saute for an additional 2 minutes.
3. Add Lentil and 3c Water to the Carrots and Onion. Bring to a boil. Cover and let simmer until the lentils reach their desired consistency. This should take 30-45 min. Check on your lentils occasionally because they may require additional water.
4. Once the lentils are soft add Tomatoes, Chicken Broth, Salt and Pepper. Simmer for an additional 5 minutes.
5. Stir in Spinach right before serving.
