Homemade Veggie Lentil Soup

Living at home with my parents over the past year, I’ve been cooking a lot of new things and have definitely broadened my cooking skills. My latest success was homemade veggie lentil soup (well mostly it was a success – both my Mom and Dad had to add some extra salt to their bowls – they love their salt!). I tend to stay away from soup recipes that require veggie broth — I think it’s much better to make everything from scratch. I like this recipe because it’s dead simple and doesn’t require a lot of steps.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup green lentils
• 1 medium-sized onion
• 2 carrots, 2 celery stalks, 2 small potatoes
• 2 crushed tomatoes
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 7-8 cups water
• cilantro
• turmeric, fresh green chillies, red chilli powder/flakes
• lemon
• salt and pepper
• olive oil

Directions:

1. Chop all the veggies, garlic, and cilantro. Crush the tomatoes in a blender.
2. In a big pot, mix water, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and olive oil. Bring to a boil.
3. Add potatoes, lentils, and crushed tomatoes after a few minutes.
4. Simmer for about 25 minutes.
5. Season to taste with fresh cilantro, turmeric, chillies, salt, pepper, and lemon. Lemon gives it a nice zesty flavour!
6. Serve with a side dish (fish or chicken), or for a light lunch, with a baguette or crackers & cheese. Will serve up to four people (for a couple days LOL!).
7. Enjoy!!