deborah madison's hearty lentil soup

It got cold outside, fast.  The fall recipes are out in full force now.  My pantry is stocked.  My heavy-bottomed pots, skillets, dutch ovens, and slow cooker are all seasoned and ready to go.

Deborah Madison's lentil soup recipe is a healthy, hearty dish for cold and rainy weather.  I learned it from my mom, so I'm sharing her (slightly altered) version here.  It's filling, it's cheap, it's delicious, and (since it's basically all vegetables) it suits nearly everyone's dietary needs and wants.

 

(Did I mention it has very few calories? But shh, you'd never know.)  The recipe follows.

Hearty Lentil Soup
Adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison

2T olive oil
2 cups finely diced yellow onion
3 large garlic cloves, minced or mashed with 1t salt
salt and pepper
3 T tomato paste
1/3 cup finely diced celery
1/3 cup finely diced carrot
1/3 cup finely diced sweet potato
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2 cups French green lentils, sorted and rinsed
1T, scant  Dijon prepared mustard
1 T sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
1 quart vegetable or chicken stock
1 quart water

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed stock pot or dutch oven.  Saute the onion in the olive oil until it soften and begins to brown,  approximately 5 minutes.  Work the tomato paste into the sauted onion, then add the garlic, celery, carrot, sweet potato, bay leaves, and parsley, and cook for 3 minutes.  Stir with a wooden spoon so the mixture won't stick or scorch.

Add the rinsed lentils, stock, and water.  Bring to a boil.  Lower heat and simmer, partially covered, until lentils and vegetables are tender, about 25 to 35 minutes.

Stir in the mustard and vinegar.  Taste and add more of either as needed.  Add salt to taste and freshly ground black pepper.  Remove the bay leaves and serve.