Carrot and Red Lentil Soup
Well, its turning wintery and our tastes are starting to change! I’ve had salad leaves for a week in the fridge, untouched, and all I want is warm comforting foods.
Food can be warming in two main ways. They are hot in temperature (soups, stews and roasts are perfect) or the ingredients can have warming properties. Here I’ve added cumin, grated ginger and garlic to my soup to increase its warming effect of one of my favourite soups.
Carrot and Red Lentil Soup
3 shallots - roughly chopped
2 cloves of garlic - chopped
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 inch grated ginger
1 bunch of small carrots or about 4 large carrots - chopped into small pieces
2 cups of dried red lentils - washed well
1.5 litres of boiling water or hot vegetable stock (I used homemade chicken stock)
1. Saute the onions in a little water for about 5-10 minutes over a medium heat.
2. Add the chopped garlic and cumin and give it a good stir. Cook for another minute or two.
3. Add the chopped carrots, dried lentils and stock and give a good stir. Season with a little salt and pepper and cover.
4. I turn up the heat so that the soup starts to boil and then I turn it down to low/medium and allow to simmer for about 30 minutes.
5. The soup is ready when the carrots easily fall apart when halved. Blend with a hand blender or liquidiser and season again if necessary.
I find this makes about 5 days soup. I either have over the week or a portion freeze for another day.
Gluten free, wheat free, sugar free, dairy free
