Smells So Good Lentil Soup

Total Time: 1 hr 40 mins Preparation Time: 25 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 15 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 2 potatoes, chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 carrots, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3 3/4 cups water
• 3 3/4 cups vegetable broth (or 35 broth cubes from freezing in ice cube trays)
• 16 ounces stewed tomatoes, chopped
• 1/2 cup tomato juice (from the can of stewed tomatoes)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 cups dried red lentils
• 1/2 lb fresh spinach, chopped (or 5 oz frozen spinach)
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Recipe

• 1 cook the potatoes a little over half way before chopping. (i microwave them on high for about 5 minutes.).
• 2 in a large soup pot, heat oil over medium heat. add onions, carrots and celery. saute until onion is tender. stir in potatoes, garlic, oregano, basil, and pepper. cook for 1-2 more minutes.
• 3 stir in water, broth, tomatoes, tomato juice, and bay leaves. (the liquid added should total 8 cups.) bring to a boil. add lentils and return to a boil. reduce heat and simmer uncovered for at least 1 hour.
• 4 cook frozen spinach separately, by the package directions, or skip this step if using fresh spinach. add the spinach and vinegar to the soup in the last 5 minutes of simmering.