Thursday, December 8, 2011

Soup!

I made some REALLY good soup the other day. Felt like eating something for lunch that was a "meal" and not just a sandwich, but didn't want to go to the store.

oil (I used olive oil because I like the taste)
1 onion
3 cloves garlic (I love garlic; you could use less)
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/4 tsp. turmeric
1/8 tsp. cayenne
4 cups broth (vegetable or chicken)
1 cup red lentils, sorted and rinsed
1/2 can diced tomatoes
salt to taste
1 1/2 tsp. lemon juice

Chop HALF the onion and the garlic cloves.
Heat the oil in a pot over medium-high heat, add the chopped onion and garlic, and brown them lightly.
Add the spices, stir and fry for a few seconds.
Add the lentils and broth. Boil, lower heat and cover pot to simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until the lentils are tender. They'll kind of fall apart.
Whisk soup until the lentils are mostly smooth.
Add tomatoes and salt, cook for a few minutes more.
Immediately before serving, stir in the lemon juice.
Garnish bowls of soup with fried onion strips (see below).

Fried Onion Garnish:
While the lentils are simmering, slice the remaining half onion very thinly. Heat a few tablespoons of oil in a small nonstick pan over medium heat. Add the onion slices; stir and fry until they are brown and crispy. Spoon them out of the pan and drain on paper towels.