a good one

I made a pot of this soup early in the week and it tastes better every day. My neighbor shared a cup of the soup with me on one of those days that I needed soul nourishment too. I know many people have New Years Resolutions to eat well. This one is vegetarian and full of protein, folic acid, antioxidants and iron. It's also easy on the budget:)

All-Around Nourishing Lentil Soup with Kale
from my neighbor Sue

Ingredients

• 1 T olive oil
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 or 3 carrots, chopped
• 6 cups vegetable stock (I used chicken stock because it was what I had on hand)
• 1 cup brown lentils
• 1 14.5 oz can stewed tomatoes
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 cups thinly sliced kale leaves
• salt and ground pepper to taste

Directions

1. Heat oil in soup pot over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and carrot and saute until soft, about 10 minutes.

2. Add stock, lentils, tomatoes, thyme and bay leaf and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, partially covered for 20 minutes.

3. Stir in kale and cook 20 minutes or until kale and lentils are tender. Remove bay leaf and ladle into bowls. (I found that 20 minutes was a bit long for the kale, so I would recommend adding it 5-10 minutes before serving. Note -- the lentils do need about 40-45 minutes until tender).

Enjoy! I certainly am!