Curried Lentil, Potato and Cauliflower Soup

It’s freezing out. And while the weather makes the 1.4 mile walk to/from work almost painful, it is perfect weather for a lentil stew. I had most of the ingredients on hand for this recipe – while all the chopping takes a bit of time the soup itself is very easy to make and pretty versatile. It would be easy to sub out the cauliflower and spinach with other vegetables you have on hand…frozen vegetables would work just fine.


Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 to 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 stalks celery, trimmed & diced
• 1 cup brown or green lentils, rinsed
• 6 cups water (I used 3 cups of vegetable broth, 3 cups of water)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 large potatoes, scrubbed and diced
• One 16-ounce can salt-free diced tomatoes, undrained
• 2 tsp good quality curry powder, or to taste
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• Pinch of nutmeg (I used about ½ tsp)
• 2 1/2 cups finely chopped cauliflower pieces
• 2 cups finely chopped fresh spinach leaves OR 1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed
• 2 Tbsp minced fresh cilantro
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a soup pot. Add the onion, celery and garlic. Sauté over medium-low heat until translucent.

2. Stir in turmeric, curry powder and nutmeg, and sauté for 1 minute.

3. Add the lentils and bay leaves. Cover with 6 cups water

4. Bring to a rapid simmer, then lower the heat. Cover and simmer gently for 10 minutes

5. Add the potatoes and tomatoes, and simmer until the potatoes are about half done, about 10 to 15 minutes

6. Add the cauliflower and simmer until the lentils and vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes longer

7. Stir in the spinach, cilantro, and lemon juice. Adjust the consistency with more water as needed, then season with salt and pepper

8. Simmer over very low heat for another 5 minutes

9. Serve at once or let stand for an hour before serving, then heat through as needed