Lori's Lentil Soup

I am dedicating this recipe to my beautiful friend Lori who is a brand new mama of the most adorable baby boy.  She loved the Kale & White Bean soup and requested I post a recipe for one featuring lentils.  So here it is!  A healthy soup, chock-full of veggies and goodness that makes great leftovers - perfect for a mama on-the-go.

You Will Need:

1 onion, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
2 carrots, diced
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 (14.5 ounce) can of diced tomatoes
2 cups dry lentils
8 cups water (or any kind of broth)
1/2 cup spinach, rinsed and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons vinegar (balsamic tastes great!)
ground black pepper
salt

Directions: 

In a large soup pot, heat oil over medium heat.  Add onions, carrots and celery and sautée until onion is tender.  Stir in garlic, bay leaf, oregano, and basil.  Cook for 2 minutes.

*I should note that I am a garlic LOVER so I added 4 cloves instead of 2 and it was delicious.  I also felt like my carrots were a little on the small side so I added an extra one as well as an extra celery stalk.  That's the great thing about soups - you can pretty much throw in whatever you like!

Stir in lentils, and add water and tomatoes.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for at least 1 hour. When ready to serve stir in spinach and cook until it wilts.  Stir in vinegar and season to taste with salt and pepper.

P.S.  I served mine with Trader Joe's Cornbread and it was AMAZING!

Kale & White Bean Soup

For today's post I thought I would share with you another great, simple recipe that I have been making a lot.  Who doesn't love a big warm bowl of soup as the weather turns colder?  This is one of my favorites because it's SOUP-er (hehe) easy to make, is insanely healthy, and uses that great wonder-vegetable we have been hearing so much about lately... KALE!

*Kale is widely considered to be among the world's most nutritious vegetables – it's high in beta carotene, vitamins K and C and is loaded with antioxidants.

I have been trying to find more ways to incorporate kale into my diet and this soup has a ton of it, is delicious, and always turns out great.  It's also quick to make for those nights when you don't have a lot of time but want to throw together something impressive and healthy.  And for those veggie-friends out there - it's vegan, too!  Enjoy!

Kale & White Bean Soup

You will need:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 cup diced yellow onion
4 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 (32-ounce) box low sodium vegetable broth
4 cups packed chopped kale (remove tough inner stems)
1 (14.5-ounce) can Italian-style diced tomatoes
1 (14.5-ounce) can no-salt-added cannellini beans, drained & rinsed
2-3 large carrots, peeled & sliced

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Directions:

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add your chopped onions & cook for about 3 minutes.  Then add your chopped garlic and cook for another 2 minutes (make sure you stir as garlic burns easily).  Now add the broth, kale, tomatoes & carrots and put the lid on.  Cook for 5 minutes or until kale is tender.  Add beans & heat thoroughly.  Serve & enjoy!

See how easy that was?  The great thing about soups is that they're also great for using up whatever leftover vegetables you have in your fridge.  For instance, last time I made this I had some green onions that were getting wilty so I chopped them up & in they went!

Also worth mentioning, if you live near a Trader Joe's they now sell pre-washed, pre-trimmed bags of kale for $1.99!  Such a great deal and it makes things super easy.  (*I noticed that some of the pieces of kale still had pretty thick stems attached so I went through and tore off the big ones before I threw them in the pot.  Not sure if this was necessary but I wanted to make sure all of the ones that ended up in my soup were nice and soft).

Also the recipe says to cook for 5 minutes but if you have other things to do (preferably in the kitchen as you should never leave anything on the stove unattended) you can totally put your burner on low & leave this soup simmering for as long as you want! Last time I made a delicious homemade pizza to go alongside it and the soup just simmered away as I chopped & assembled.  All in all a great, healthy, delicious meal that you will definitely make again.


xo!