Lentils are a great source of vegetarian protein - providing up to 25% of protein by weight. This is almost as much as sardines or tofu! Dr. Weston Price also considers them the most nutritious of all legumes due to their high mineral content. They are eaten around the world and make for great soups & salads. They also cook a lot faster than beans - and in my life, time is precious! I make a vegetable soup whenever I have several things in the fridge that need to be cooked before they start to go bad - onion, broccoli, tomatoes, greens,etc. Usually I add lentils to this and PRESTO! Dinner is served. One lentil soup recipe that I have time-and-again based my own versions on is Heidi Swanson’s recipe here - it just stuck with me, I guess, and I use the basic building blocks of that soup for TONS of easy variations. Here’s one with a twist:

Texan Lentil Soup:

~1 C French green lentils, rinsed

2 large carrots, chopped

½ red onion, chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, chopped or minced

2 tomatoes chopped and mashed up with a potato masher (aka make-your-own crushed tomatoes)

2 C vegetable broth or HERB INFUSED vegetable broth!

1 tsp ground cumin

salt and pepper to taste

½ C frozen corn kernels

2-3 stalks curly or dino kale, chopped or torn up into small pieces (use more if you have smaller stalks to work with)

2-3 C filtered water

fresh cilantro, chopped

I usually pre-boil the lentils for 15 minutes in water, strain and set aside. Pour 2 glugs of olive oil in a soup pot with carrots, onion, garlic and heat on medium high, coating all vegetables until the onions are just tender. Add in lentils, crushed tomatoes and stir to mix flavors. Add broth, cumin, salt / pepper, corn kernels and keep pot at a simmer for about 15-20 minutes, adding the water as needed when the liquid gets absorbed. Before serving, stir in kale greens and heat 3-5 minutes more. Top with cilantro and avocado if you have one!