This recipe was designed with 3 goals in mind.
1. Use up the veggies I had on hand.
2. Be easy and come together quickly so I can avoid being in the kitchen all night.
3. Taste a bit more flavorful then typical lentil soup but not taste "hot" so my son will actually eat it.
If you like more kick in your soups like I do you can add 1/8-1/4 tsp of ground cayenne pepper. I love the flavor cayenne adds to soups. There is some heat to it but it adds more than that. I skipped it here because even a hint of heat and my son will not touch it. I hope he grows to like spicy some day but it's a lot to ask a five year old.
There is no fresh garlic in this recipe because I am honestly just tired of mincing up garlic. I need to find a more convenient way to process garlic that doesn't involve tiny chopping or cleaning out an impossible to clean garlic press. If I find an amazing hack, I will of course post it :).
What you need:
1 tbsp olive oil
3 cups vegetable broth (MSG free- be sure to check the label)
1 cup water
Any vegetables you like in soup and have on hand. I used the following...
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 large mushrooms, chopped
1 bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 handful of snap peas, strings removed, chopped
1 cup of small green lentils (sometimes called french lentils)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp garlic powder
black pepper to taste
What to do:
Pop all the vegetables into a medium sized pot with the olive oil. Fry on medium head for 5 minutes until the water starts coming out of the vegetables.
Add the rest of his ingredients and stir together. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer for about 45 minutes. Ensure the lentils are completely cooked and tender before removing from heat.
Enjoy your warm, hardy soup :)
