My Mamma’s Lentil Soup

So it’s starting to get a little chilly in Tel Aviv and the fact that I’ll be celebrating my first Thanksgiving away from home is sinking in so I figured it was necessary  to make something homey. So I decided to make my absolute favorite comfort food, lentil soup.

Lentils are a legume and come in a variety of different colors. Typically my mom uses lentils of the brown variety but I decided to experiment and try out the orange lentils. As I’ve learned the brown ones are a little more hearty and will render more of a stew. The orange ones are smaller and when cooked for a while turn into a creamy soup, either way you go you’re gonna make something delicious packed with flavor (not to mention iron and protein!).  For cooking, the only difference is that instead of cooking for 2-3 hours it really only needs 30-45 minutes.

Continue reading for the recipe….

Here’s what you do:

Olive Oil

1 yellow onion

a few stalks of celery

2 carrots

2 small Tomatoes

(all diced)

Cumin

Salt/Pepper

1 bag lentils

First clean off the lentils running water through them until the water comes out clear. In a large pot let the sliced onion simmer in olive oil until they become translucent.  Add the carrots and the celery and let them cook until they are soft. Add the tomatoes and spices and let simmer for 2-3 minutes as the flavor combine. Then add the lentils to the bottom of the pot and stir. Let the lentils stand for about 2 minutes before adding 4 cups water. Turn the heat up and bring the soup to a boil, come for 5 minutes, then cover the pot, turn down the heat, and let cook for 2-3 hours.

Enjoy!