Red Lentil & Vegetable Soup with Herb Butter
This soup makes a large quantity which can be eaten over a few days or frozen into handy meal portions. The flavoured butter is optional but it really is what makes this soup adding an extra “mmm” factor to the taste. If you are pressed for time then a simple drizzle of olive oil and scattering of chopped parsley would suffice.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (300g) split red lentils
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 leek or onion, roughly chopped
- 2 carrots, roughly chopped
- 2 stalks of celery, roughly chopped
- large wedge of pumpkin, about 400g, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- pinch of chilli flakes, optional
- 6 cups (1.5 litres) water or vegetable stock
- about 1 tsp salt
- lemon wedges to serve
Herb Butter
- 50 g soft butter
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- small handful coriander or parsley, finely chopped
- zest of ½ a lemon
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- I like to pre-soak the split lentils for 2-3 hours in a bowl of water - this helps improve the digestion of legumes. You can skip this step if time is short. Either way, rinse the lentils thoroughly in a sieve until the water runs clear.
- Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over a moderate heat. Add the leek/onion, carrot and celery. Sauté for 8 minutes until softened. Add the pumpkin and spices and mingle with the other vegetables for 2 more minutes. Add the lentils and stock/water and bring to a gentle boil. Simmer for 25-30 minutes until the lentils and vegetables are soft.
- Remove the soup from the heat and puree with a stick blender. Add salt to taste (be generous) and reheat. Adjust consistency with extra hot water if needed - aim for a not too runny, cling to the spoon, consistency.
- To make the flavoured butter place all the ingredients into a bowl and mash together with a fork.
- Serve the hot soup with 1-2 teaspoons of Herb Butter added to each bowl and let it melt into the soup. Finish with a squeeze of lemon and enjoy.