Thursday, October 21, 2010

Brown Rice and Lentil Soup

I love soup, especially when it is cold outside. My friend Kim shared this recipe with me. She said she got it from the Salt Lake City Food Coop newsletter years ago. One thing about the recipe is that you need to make sure you have enough time, if you try to do it in a hurry you get crunchy rice and lentils. Not so tasty. One of the things that I really like about it is how healthy it is.

Brown Rice and Lentil Soup
1 medium onion chopped (1 Tbsp dry onion plus 1 1/2 T water)
1 cup chopped carrots (1 Tbsp dry carrots plus 1 1/2 T water)
1 celery stalk chopped (1 Tbsp dry celery plus 1 1/2 T water)
½ red peppers chopped up (1 Tbsp dry peppers plus 1 1/2 T water)
2 20 once can tomatoes NOT STEWED
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
2 bay leaves
2 cloves minced garlic
Pepper to taste
½ to ¾ cup *lentils rinsed
1/3 to 2/3 cup uncooked brown rice (soak rice ½ hour before you cook)

In large pot cook all vegetables until soft. Add tomatoes cook for 10 minutes
In blender process until pureed. Stir in broth and remaining ingredients except lentils and rice
Bring to a boil. Add lentils and rice. Cover and simmer 45 minutes until lentils add rice are tender.

*Lentils-What are lentils? Lentils are a legume used in many middle eastern dishes. The seeds require a cooking time of 10–30 minutes, depending on the variety and should not be eaten raw. Lentils contain high levels of proteins, including the essential amino acids isoleucine and lysine. Lentils are an inexpensive protein and are essential to those who adhere to a vegetarian diet. They can be sprouted. When buying lentils look for brighter (lentils come in brown, yellow, green, and black)colors, dull dusty lentil are old. Lentils are sold in the grocery store near the dry beans. Or from a variety of food storage companies. Lentils are a low cost way to add protein to your diet. I use these lentils from Shelf Reliance. http://www.shelfreliance.com/lentils-1.html