Puy lentil soup

A hearty lentil dish - is it a soup or a stew?!

I love this recipe - it's full of goodness and while I often have it for lunch, it's substantial enough for dinner, perhaps with some bread. Perfect for a chilly winter's day! The quantities are very flexible - I usually judge by eye so had to weigh everything specially for you 😊



Serves 4

Ingredients:

Olive oil
100g pancetta, cubed (optional)
2 onions, chopped
2-3 carrots, chopped
1-2 sticks celery, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped (or 1 tsp dried)
2-3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
250g Puy lentils
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1l vegetable stock
Few handfuls of spinach
1 lemon

Method:

1. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large saucepan then add the pancetta and cook gently until the fat starts to run. (If you're not using the pancetta then use 2tbsp oil)
2. Add onions, carrot, celery, rosemary and bay and sweat gently for 10mins or so until everything is nice and soft.
3. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two.
4. Next add the lentils, tinned tomatoes and stock. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20mins or until the lentils are tender but with a little bite. I often find it takes a bit longer - depends on your lentils I think.
5. Stir in the spinach and cook for another couple of minutes until the spinach has wilted. Remove from the heat and add a big squeeze of lemon and some black pepper as you serve.