This article was written for Annabel & Grace, which is now part of Rest Less.
When I was a child, I never liked soup. How things have changed… recently a bowl of homemade potage is my favourite lunch, especially when accompanied by a slice of griddled sourdough. I only recently started using lentils – what a mistake knowing now how tasty they are! The easy to make lentil dhal is now another recipe firmly on my radar. This Lentil and Spinach Soup is another winner… why not give it a try.
Lentil, Spinach & Cumin Soup
Difficulty: Easy4
servings15
minutes45
minutesA Middle Eastern style soup packed with lentils, spices, spinach – and topped with fried onions and pine nuts. Mouth and stomach filling!
Ingredients
3-4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 onions, sliced
4 garlic cloves, sliced
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp cumin seeds
150g brown or green lentils
1.2 litres vegetable stock (we like Knorr)
200g spinach
Freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon
4 tbsp natural yogurt
25g pine nuts, toasted
Directions
- Heat 3 tbsp of the olive oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan and add the sliced onions. Cook, covered, for 8-10 minutes until softened. Remove half the onions and set aside.
- Continue to cook the onions left in the pan for 10-15 minutes until deep brown, sweet and caramelised. Remove and set aside for the garnish.
- Return the softened onions to the pan, add the garlic, coriander, cumin seeds and lentils, then stir for 1-2 minutes until well coated in oil. Add more oil if necessary. Add the stock, bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer gently for 30 minutes, uncovered, until the lentils are soft.
- Add the spinach and stir until wilted. Transfer half the soup to a blender and liquidise to make a purée. Stir this back into the soup. Season to taste with lemon juice, salt and ground black pepper.
- Divide the soup equally among 4 bowls, add a spoonful of plain yogurt to each and scatter the pine nuts and fried onions over the top. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Alternatively use a Middle Eastern spice mix such as baharat mix from Bart instead of the ground coriander and cumin seeds.
Another two fab recipes – Prawn Laksa soup and Pea soup (amongst others) can be found here