Lentil Soup

2 TBL olive oil
5 cup finely chopped onion
½ cup finely chopped carrot
½ cup finely chopped celery
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
2 tsp kosher salt
1 pound lentils, picked and rinsed
1 cup peeled and chopped tomatoes
2 quarts chicken or vegetable broth*
1 tsp garam masala
1 ½ tsp ground cardamom
½ tsp ground cayenne pepper
½ tsp ground cumin
1 15 oz. can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 15 oz. can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

Place the olive oil into a large 6 quart Dutch oven and set over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, ginger and salt and sweat until the onions are translucent, about 7 minutes. Add the lentils, tomatoes, broth, garam masala, cardamom, cayenne and cumin and stir to combine. Increase the heat to high and just bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the lentils are tender, about 45 minutes.


Puree about half the soup in a food processor or blender. Return the pureed soup to the pot. Add the garbanzo beans and cannellini beans and cook another 15 minutes.


Serving Size: makes about 8 1-cup servings

Number of Servings: 1

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user SRRCK22.