Health Is Wealth Lentil Soup
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This classic lentil soup is brightened up with the addition of fresh parsley “pistou,” spooned on top just before serving. I often make the soup with a collagen-rich chicken broth, made from chicken feet and wings, which adds flavor and body and (in my mind) makes the soup even healthier than it already is. I call it Health Is Wealth Lentil Soup because in Italy lentils symbolize coins and are eaten at New Year’s to bring prosperity.
Read: Three feel-good vegetable soups that take you from winter to spring
Finely chop the parsley stems from the bunch and reserve the leaves to make the pistou.
Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat for about a minute. Add the onion, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the salt, and sauté for about 5 minutes to begin to soften it. Add the carrots, celery and garlic (I grate the garlic directly into the pot with a Microplane), sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon of salt, and sauté for about 5 minutes to begin to soften the vegetables.
Move the vegetables aside and add the tomato paste. (I drop it in tablespoon-sized blobs in the pan rather than measuring it) and cook it for about 2 minutes to caramelize it. Stir the tomato paste in with the vegetables.
Add the lentils, thyme sprigs, bay leaves, arbol chile and half of the broth (or water). Increase the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil.
Reduce the heat so the soup is gently simmering and cook for 45 minutes, adding the remaining broth (or water) when the lentils have absorbed the liquid. Stir the lentils occasionally to keep them from sticking to the pot and adjust the heat as needed to maintain a low simmer. Turn off the heat.
Taste for salt and add more if needed. You can remove and discard the thyme, bay and chile, or leave them floating in the soup. Serve warm. Top each serving with a spoonful of the pistou.
To make the pistou: Finely chop the parsley in a mini food processor or by hand and put it in a bowl. Use a Microplane to grate the garlic into the bowl (or finely chop it and add it). Add the salt and oil and stir to combine. Spoon this on the lentil soup just before serving.
