Welcome to my Let's Cook - Ramadan Series. If you don't know what Ramadan is, it's the ninth month of the Islamic calendar when Muslims fast for 30 days, from sunrise to sunset. It's an incredibly spiritual month for many and I wanted to start it off with a staple of this major holiday. Lentil Soup is a staple food of Middle Eastern culture and people tend to break their fast with lentil soup because it is highly nourishing and filling. Lentil soup makes for a great source of protein, fiber, and iron. Middle Easterner's add baked pita chips on top of the soup for an extra crunch and for some extra flavor we squeeze on fresh lemon and garnish the soup with parsley. This is a very simple recipe that you can make for yourself, you do not have to celebrate Ramadan to make it!
Yields: 4 people
Prep time: 5-10 minutes
Total time: 40-45 minutes
This recipe is dairy free, gluten free, vegetarian, and vegan.
Ingredients:
1. 2 celery sticks, 1 carrot, ¼ of an onion for the mirepoix (an essential base of any soup)
2. 3 cloves minced garlic
3. 1 cup of washed red lentils
4. 2 TBPS of extra virgin olive oil
5. Salt
6. 1-2 TBSPs of cumin (depends on how you like it)
7. Pita bread
8. Fresh parsley to garnish
Instructions:
1. First, make sure the carrot, celery sticks, and onion have been finely diced.
2. In a pot, add 2 TBSPs of olive oil and then add in the minced garlic and mirepoix. Stir and add in 1 TBSP of salt and 1 TBSP of cumin on medium-high heat.
3. While these cook a bit, heat up water in an electric kettle.
4. Add in 1 cup of thoroughly washed red lentils. Stir in.
5. Add in the boiled water until the pot is ¾ full.
6. Allow the soup to simmer for 30 minutes and remove any debris that comes to the top of the soup.
7. Once the carrots are fully cooked, lower the heat on the stove.
8. With a hand held blender, blend the soup until it looks of the consistency in the picture above. It should be thinner consistency.
9. Put it back onto the stove and cook for 5-10 more minutes.
10. Do a taste test for any more salt or cumin. Add if necessary.
11. Garnish with fresh parsley, fresh lemon, and the baked pita chips.
12. Enjoy!
Baked Pita Chips: Preheat the oven to 400, cut up ¼ loaf of pita bread into small pieces. Place the pieces on a baking pan and add olive oil and salt. Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes or until crispy. Add to the top of your bowl of lentil soup.
