I’ve gotta be honest. I haven’t been eating alot of meat lately and I’ve been feeling a bit tired. And the weather has been pretty shitty, so I made a GIANT batch of lentil soup hoping that it would give me the protein and vitamin boost I’ve been needing. This recipe would be easy enough to make vegetarian or vegan, but I’m not that picky. This soup is a hodge-podge of different lentil soup recipes I’ve seen around the internet…. if I saw an ingredient I liked I just added it to the Crock Pot. I love Crock Pot meals because sometimes I really don’t have the energy to cook up a big meal…. and this recipe makes so much food I was able to put half of it in the freezer.
Ingredients
10-12 servings.
16 oz. green lentils
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 celery stalks, 1/4 inch slices
3 carrots, 1/4 inch slices
2 leeks, sliced, white and light green parts only
1/2 bunch of swiss chard, stems removed and sliced
1 28 oz. can of organic tomatoes in juice, diced
4 cups of vegetable broth
4 cups of chicken broth
1 T. olive oil
2-3 bay leaves
1 1/2 t. dried thyme
1 t. chili pepper flakes
sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
sour cream or plain yogurt, for garnish
fresh cilantro, for garnish
Instructions
1. In a large saute pan heat up the olive oil over medium heat, add the onions and saute until they “sweat” and are slightly translucent (took about 5 minutes), then add the minced garlic and cook for another minute or two being careful not to burn the garlic. Adjust the heat if necessary.
2. In a large Crock Pot combine all of the other ingredients except the salt and pepper. Add in the onions and garlic and stir it all up.
3. Set Crock Pot to low heat (cook time 8-10 hours) or high heat (4-5 hours).
Note: We do not have a large Crock Pot, we have a smallish one, so if you also have a smallish one, cut the recipe in half. Or do what I did and let it finish on the stove top in a dutch oven. I cooked it for about two hours covered on low-medium heat, at a simmer. And it turned out perfectly.