For my ladies' quarterly dinner group, we've started a soup swap. We each bring a quart of homemade soup to exchange after dinner. This time I came home with Strawberry Soup (like a smoothie!), Cold Curried Carrot and Cocunut Milk, Potato Leek, and Mushroom Soup. I made Hearty Lentil Soup from Cook's Illustrated.
Hearty Lentil Soup
Cook's Illustrated
From the Cook's
Illustrated website: Lentils du Puy, sometimes called French green lentils, are
our first choice for this recipe, but brown, black, or regular green lentils
are fine, too. Note that cooking times will vary depending on the type of
lentils used. Lentils lose flavor with age, and because most packaged lentils
do not have expiration dates, try to buy them from a store that specializes in
natural foods and grains. Before use, rinse and then carefully sort through the
lentils to remove small stones and pebbles. The soup can be made in advance.
After adding the vinegar in step 2, cool the soup to room temperature and
refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to 2 days. To serve, heat it
over medium-low until hot, then stir in the parsley.
In a large stockpot or Dutch oven cook until crispy:
3 slices bacon, cut into
1/4-inch pieces (about 3 ounces)
Add to the pot, and stir occasionally until they soften (about 2 min.):
1 large onion, chopped
fine (about 1 1/2 cups)
2 medium carrots, peeled
and chopped medium (about 1 cup)
Add and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds):
3 medium cloves garlic, minced
Stir in and cook for another 30 seconds:
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can
diced tomatoes, drained
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon minced fresh
thyme leaves
Stir in:
1 cup lentils, rinsed
and picked over (7 ounces)
1 teaspoon table salt
ground black pepper to taste
Cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook until vegetables are softened and lentils have darkened (about 8-10 minutes).
Uncover, increase heat to high, and add:
1/2 cup dry white wine
Bring to a simmer and then add:
4 1/2 cups low sodium
chicken broth
1 1/2 cups water
Bring to a boil, cover partially, and reduce heat to low. Simmer until the lentils are tender but still hold their shape (30-35 min.). Discard the bay leaf.
Puree 3 cups of soup in the blender until smooth*, then return to the pot. Stir in:
1 1/2 teaspoons balsamic
vinegar
Heat soup over medium-low heat until hot, about 5 minutes.
Stir in:
2 TB fresh chopped parsley
Serve and garnish each bowl with some parsley sprigs.
*The original recipe calls for some of the soup to be pureed at the end, but my family (as well as the dinner group ladies) liked the texture and taste of the soup without pureeing. I also think it looks better as is. Go ahead and puree if you'd like, but it's not necessary.
