Baby It's Cold Outside!

Today is a blustery day and we are going to have soup for supper. We have to keep the calorie count down these days and eat healthy, to prepare for the food frenzy to come! This is a delicious and hearty soup that will warm your belly! Lentils are also a traditional dish in Italian homes on new Year's Eve. They are eaten for good fortune in the New Year ahead! Mange!

Lentil Soup

1 lb. Bag of brown dry lentils
1 small onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
2-3 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 dried red peppers, broken in half or crushed red pepper to taste
Olive oil
3-4 teaspoons of marinara sauce
2 cans low fat, low sodium chicken broth
3-4 cups water
Dried basil
Dried parsley
Garlic salt or powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Place lentils in a large stockpot and add 3 cups of water and 2 cans of chicken broth. Start cooking over medium heat. As the cooking process continues, you may have to add water depending on how much the lentils soak up while cooking.

In the meantime, place about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large sauté pan. Add the diced onion, diced carrots, diced celery, chopped garlic, and red pepper. Sauté until vegetables start getting tender; add to the lentils in the stockpot, along with the tomato sauce. When lentils begin to boil, add basil, parsley, salt, pepper and garlic salt or powder to taste. Reduce heat to simmer. Continue to taste for seasoning and add as needed. Lentils should be soft/firm…they should have a bite and not be mushy. This should take about 45 minutes.

Serve over ditalini pasta with grated cheese. Enjoy!