Hearty Lentil Soup

This soup is right up my alley. Packed with flavor and fiber, but low-cal. Fire-roasted tomatoes, leafy kale, carrots and celery are added to a cumin-flavored lentil soup base for a nice hearty bowl of healthy goodness. I've read that french lentils are great for lentil soup because they get less mushy over time (see Sweet Science), but I've used a variety of other lentils for soups and they've all been good enough for me. Next time I'll try out the French...

SWEET SCIENCE:
Brown, red, black, green - lentils come in a variety of colors and sizes. They were originally native to Southwest Asia, but are now commonly grown across Europe and Asia. There are two main varieties of lentils: varieties with flat, large seeds, 5mm or more across, and varieties with small, more rounded seeds. Because lentils are flat and thin, with thin seed coats, cooking water only has to penetrate a millimeter or two from each side, so lentils soften much more quickly than most beans and peas. The large varieties are more commonly grown and available in grocery stores; the smaller variety include green French lentille du Puy, black beluga, and green Spanish pardina (and since they are less flat, they don't tend to get as mushy in soup over time).



RECIPE: Hearty Lentil Soup
serves 6-8

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups dried lentils 
6 cups water
2 tablespoons oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 stalk of celery, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2-4 cloves of garlic
1.5 teaspoons cumin
1.5 teaspoons ground coriander
28 ounces fire roasted tomatoes
2 cups water
3 cups chopped fresh kale


DIRECTIONS:
Bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a large pot. Add lentils and cook at a slow boil for about 20 minutes, or until lentils are cooked. Lentils will absorb most of the water. Remove from heat, transfer lentils to a bowl if you want to use the same pot for the vegetables.

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a soup pot. Add onion, carrot, celery, and pepper. Cover and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, until onions are soft and translucent. Add garlic, cook 1 minute. Add spices and stir to coat the vegetables, cook for another minute or so. Add tomatoes, water, and kale. Heat until kale is wilted.

STORAGE:
Keep in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days, or store in the freezer for several months.