Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Soup for you!

I eat a lot of lentils. They sort of take the place of meat, which I try to stay away from, plus they're high in fiber, low in fat, blah, blah, blah. (Honestly, eating healthy things can be so tiresome.) I found a recipe today for lentil soup, and I have decided to share it with you for two reasons: First, I quite enjoyed it, and second, it earned a passing grade from my better half.

2 Tablespoons olive-oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled & chopped
2 celery stalks, copped
2 garlic gloves, chopped
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1.25 cups lentils
11 (yes, ELEVEN) cups chicken broth
2/3 cup elbow pasta (you won't miss this if you leave it out)
1 cup shredded Parmesan

Heat the oil in a heavy, large (emphasis on large!) pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots & celery. Add the garlic, salt & pepper and saute until all the vegetables are tender, about 5 to 8 minutes (or maybe longer, which is what happened with me.) Add the tomatoes (including the juice) and simmer until the juice evaporates a little and the tomatoes break down, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Add the lentils and mix to coat. Add the broth and stir. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover & simmer over low heat until the lentils are almost tender, about 30 minutes. Stir in the pasta. Simmer until the pasta is tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Ladle the soup into bowls. Sprinkle with Parmesan.

The recipe claims to serves 6, but that is such complete and utter rubbish. Maybe 6 giants or something, but as for regular people, probably 12 or 15.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

DEAR # 1 #1 no barley an salsa ?

Hilary said...

You can add all the barley and salsa you want, sir!

Unknown said...

What's up with this no meat policy? Have you ever had meat? It's delicious!

Anonymous said...

tuhmmater juice ?? DEAR HILARY #1#1 ?

Hilary said...

Mike - I don't have a strict no-meat policy (as evidenced by our last hoo-haw at the Cheesecake Factory); I just like to keep it to a minimum.

W.G. Chase - Go crazy with the tomato juice!

Anonymous said...

sounds yummy!!
Looking forward to seeing you kids tonight!

Anonymous said...

I am not a huge lentil fan - but this looks good. Might have to try it! Probably awesome on a cold day!

Troy and Beth said...

Sounds delish! I'll probably have to add ham...so Troy will count it as food. *grin