This was one of my favorite soups growing up, especially in the winter! It is nice and hearty and warms your soul! I like to spice it up a little bit by adding some red pepper flakes but if spice isn't your thing, you can definitely omit the red pepper flakes. If you are not familiar with lentils, they are super rich in nutrients! They are packed with fiber, protein, folate, iron, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc and potassium but you wouldn't even realize it because they are so tasty. On top of that, this soup is incredibly easy to make because it does not require a lot of prep since you will blend everything together at the end!
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 large onion, cubed
1-2 Red Potatoes, cubed (optional)
3 Large Carrots, peeled, cubed
1 garlic clove
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon of red pepper paste (if you don’t have red pepper paste just use tomato paste and red pepper flakes)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 carton chicken or vegetable broth/stock (I used organic vegetable stock from Trader Joe’s)
4-5 cups water
2-3 cups red lentils (Trader Joe's / Whole Foods)
Juice of 1/2 lemon or more to taste
Directions:
Turn stove on to high heat and in a deep large pot add olive oil, onion, potato, garlic, carrots all the spices, and tomato/pepper paste. Saute and stir constantly for about 4 minutes. Then turn the stove down to a medium-low heat and add in broth/stock, water, and lentils. Stir frequently and partially cover pot with lid (you can also place a wooden spoon on top of the pot to keep soup from overflowing). You want to ensure that you stir often to keep the lentils from burning so either be close to the stove and stir or keep your heat on low. Cook everything for about 30 minutes or until lentils are very soft. Once complete, take a hand blender (you can turn the stove off at this point) and blend all the ingredients together to turn into a nice thick red lentil soup!
Once you place the soup into bowls you can top it off with some fresh squeezed lemon and red pepper flakes (and even a drizzle of evoo)