Vegetarian Lentil Soup

So here it is: my own recipe (and healthy!) that I make 2 or 3 times a year. 

• 1 pound carrots - peeled and diced
• 1 medium to large onion - peeled and diced
• 1 head of garlic - peeled and diced

• 1/2 cup light olive oil
• 2 15-ounce cans diced tomatoes (or one 29-ounce can) - undrained
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 pound dry lentils - cleaned in a strainer
• 8 cups hot water
• 2 medium bay leaves

Directions:

Heat oil in a large pot (I used a 4-quart pot).  When the oil is just hot, add the carrots.  Sauté (occasionally stirring) for 3 or 4 minutes.  Add the onions and stir together.  Add the garlic, but do not stir right away (because garlic will burn quicker that the other ingredients).  Cover and let cook over medium-high heat for 3 or 4 minutes.  Take the cover off, mix all ingredients, and cover again.  

After another 3 or 4 minutes (the onions should look translucent but not brown), add the tomatoes (juice and all), salt, lentils, water, and bay leaves.  Stir all ingredients together. Simmer for an hour and 15 minutes.  

You can eat it after that, but it really is one of those things that tastes better the next day (and the day after that!).  The ingredients need time to really interlock their flavors together.  I also add a bit more salt to my own bowl because the nature of lentils is that they need it.  So here it is - a healthy recipe - and my very own (which really doesn't align with my mission of using cookbook recipes, but I needed to make something hot and healthy!).

 

• Prep time: 45 minutes (yes, it takes that long to peel and dice the vegetables and then clean the lentils)
• Cook time: 90 minutes (this includes the hour and 15 minutes that the pot is simmering)