Red Lentil and Sweet Potato Soup

I  was planning on making a vegetable soup, one made from onion, carrot and potato.
 
Discussing this with my mother, I mentioned something about adding a few red lentils to bulk it up. She replied,  “and they are full of protein and why not some sweet potato, they go well together ”.
 
When talking to my mother, we often discuss food preparations, as we have since I was a little boy, that is how I learnt to cook. Today, she is 92, a staunch vegan and still an avid cook. When she recommends something, I listen.
 
So, my soup changed to a ‘Lentil and Sweet Potato Soup’.
 
Enough here to feed 4 people at a sitting.
 
INGREDIENTS

• 100g red lentils (  ½ a cup )
• 1 onion - chopped
• 1 carrot - chopped small
• 1 sweet potato – cubed ( washed, unpeeled )
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 Litre of water
• Spring of thyme/pinch if dried
• 1 bay leaf
• A lemon
• Sea salt
• A drop of olive oil

 
 
METHOD

1.  Soften the onion and garlic in the drop of olive oil
2. Add the lentils to the onion and give it a minute
3. Now add the carrot, sweet potato, thyme, and bay leaf, along with 1 litre of water.
4. Bring to the boil, then simmer for approx. 15 minutes until carrots are cooked
5. Remove the bay leaf and the sprig of thyme
6. With a hand blender, blend it nice and smooth
7. Add ½ tsp of salt then taste it and see if you want more
8. Squeeze ½ the lemon and add juice to the soup. Cut the other half into wedges and serve with each bowl.

 
Serve with a few slices of bread sandwiched with a nice lick of Hungry Soul cream cheese!
  
Note – when peeling vegetables, I try to use organic vegetables as much as possible, so I simply wash the potatoes or carrots and use them as is. The outer peel has plenty of nutrients and also gives food a nice, whole-food taste.
  
HUNGRY SOUL … Making it easier and tastier to adopt that vegan diet the world needs!
 
Jacques Brennan 

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