Good and Hot -- Lentil Vegetable Soup

Trisha Tisma has always lived in Duluth on or near a farm on Bunten Road. As she was growing up, she watched Duluth grow up around her. Her family still owns the farm. They now live adjacent to it. 

Thinking of farm living brings to mind good, fresh food and that’s exactly what Tisma likes to use. Her son does organic gardening on the farm, so for most of the year there are fresh vegetables available that she likes to add to her soups, stews and other dishes. 

Tisma started cooking a lot when her children were coming along. She made her own baby food and continued serving the kids good nutritious food all the way through their growing years. She wanted to teach her family to be healthy and eat nutritiously.

She loves experimenting in the kitchen. Tisma recently had some fresh spinach, which she decided to add to a pot of chili, and said it tasted great. “I love being over the stove, seeing the finished product and knowing what I made is healthy and good," she said.

Below Tisma shares with us her lentil vegetable soup that’s health, hearty and will warm you up on a cold winter day. 

Lentil Vegetable Soup
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hr 30 minutes
Serves: 8-10 Servings

Ingredients:

• 1 pound French green lentils

• 4 cups chopped yellow onions (3 large onions)

• 4 cups chopped leeks, white part only (2 leeks)

• 1 Tbs. minced garlic (3 cloves)

• ¼ cup good olive oil, plus additional for drizzling on top

• 1 Tbs. kosher salt

• 1½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

• 1 Tbs. minced fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried

• 1 tsp. ground cumin

• 3 cups medium diced celery (8 stalks)

• 3 cups medium diced carrots (4 to 6 carrots)

• 3 quarts chicken stock

• ¼ cup tomato paste

• 2 Tbs red wine or red wine vinegar

• baby spinach or fresh kale (1 bag of baby spinach or 1 bunch of kale)

• freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Prep:
In a large bowl, cover the lentils with boiling water and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Drain.

In a large stockpot over medium heat, sauté the onions, leeks, and garlic with the olive oil, salt, pepper, thyme, and cumin for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are translucent and very tender. 

Add the celery and carrots and sauté for 10 more minutes. 

Add the chicken stock, tomato paste, and lentils. Cover and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour, until the lentils are cooked through. 

Check and adjust the seasonings. 

Remove from heat and add the red wine, spinach or kale.

Serve hot, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with grated Parmesan.