Curried Lentil Soup

The past few weeks have been filled with laughter, food, family, and holidays. I'm sad that the 2013 holidays have come to a close, but excited for what 2014 will bring us. I can honestly say that I have no idea what Jacob and I will be doing or where we will be living this time next year. I think this is the first time our future plans have been so blurry, but it's kind of exciting.

We spent Christmas week between our two families. I was horrible at taking pictures while we were home, in fact, I didn't take any. A friend of ours did take some snapshots while we were all out shooting at Jacob's parent's farm. Here's one of me missing a clay pigeon. Ow, my shoulder was sore after that.

We also spent some time with Jacob's family the weekend before Christmas festivities started when Andrew graduated from the best university in the state - Appalachian. Here we are pictured with the former mascot himself (hence, the shoes), plus his beautiful girlfriend and my sister in law.

Ok, enough of that. On to the food. Curried lentil soup! Now you may be asking yourself, "why should I eat lentils"? Yeah, I though so. Well, lucky for you - I have the answer. Lentils are very high in folate, fiber, protein, iron, and many other awesome things. They're ridiculously cheap, too. A bag of lentils (usually around 1 lb) costs around $1.50-$2.00. And a pound of lentils is a LOT of lentils.

This soup is a one pot wonder. It's packed with veggies, spices, barley, and (previously noted) lentils. Serve it up with a dollop of sour cream and come corn bread for a full meal, or eat it by itself. It only gets better with time!

Start by soaking the lentils in very hot water. When you cover them with water and let them sit for 15-20 minutes they'll double in size. Then, drain, and they're ready for use!

Chop up whatever veggies you have on hand. I used cabbage, carrots, onion, celery, garlic, and mushrooms.

Saute. 

Add salt.

Once the veggies are tender, add the pre-soaked lentils.

Some tomatoes go in next.

And plenty of curry! I love curry. It has such a rich color and flavor. It's a powerful spice, so don't use it unless you plan to flavor your whole dish with it. But when it is used with intention, it's amazing.

Finally, pearled barley.

Simmer for 45 minutes or 6 hours! 

We had skillet cornbread on the side. The key to making the best skillet cornbread is to heat up some oil in the pan before your pour the batter in. 

Dinner is served! Perfect dish for a cold winter night. Best served alongside one you love and an episode of parenthood (LOVE that show).

Curried Lentil Soup Recipe:

Makes enough soup for 6 main courses

- 2 cups dry lentils (4 cups once re-hydrated)

- 1 and 1/2 cups roughly chopped cabbage

- 1 cup chopped onion

- 1 cup chopped mushrooms

- 1/2 cup chopped carrots

- 1/2 cup chopped celery

- 4 cloves minced garlic

- 2 tbsp olive oil

- 1 can (2 cups) diced tomatoes

- 1-2 tsp salt

- 2 tsp curry powder

- 3/4 cup pearled barley

- 2-3 cups water

Directions:

- Boil water and pour enough over dried lentils in a ceramic bowl or a pan to cover completely. Let the lentils sit for 15-20 minutes.

- Chop the vegetables, heat the olive oil over medium/high heat and cook in a large soup pot until tender.

- Add salt, curry powder, hydrated lentils, and tomatoes.

- Add enough water to make the soup the consistency you like. I added 3 cups of water to this batch.

- Stir in pearled barley.

- Simmer on low/medium heat for at least 45 minutes, and up to 4 hours (if cooking for a long time, simmer on low heat).

- Serve with sour cream and corn bread!