Spicy Lentil Stew

We have a Nor’Easter hitting us this week so this soup Sunday I was craving something I’d want to eat to keep me warm in the middle of a snow storm. That’s when I knew I wanted to make lentil soup. Welp, I ended up with lentil stew and I’m not even mad about it. We actually really liked the way it turned out and it was even more delicious than I anticipated. 

I love lentils, and you cook them basically the same way you do rice and quinoa although you’ll want to soak lentils first for about an hour or two before suing them. The good thing about lentils is that they are full of protein and fiber and low in fat, but you definitely can’t eat them raw, you’ll end up with some pretty funky GI symptoms.

Thankfully in this recipe they are cooked haha, so now you can enjoy a little spicy stew to start off your  week!

Spicy lentil stew

Ingredients

• 1 orange sweet potato
• 1 purple sweet potato
• 1 red pepper
• 5 stalks celery
• 5 carrots
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/2 onion
• 1/2 lemon used for lemon juice
• 5 oz spinach
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup lentils
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper 
• 1/2 tsp onion powder,
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes 

Directions:

Soak lentils for 1-2 hours 

While your lentils are coking you’ll want to start prepping your veggies , chop the sweet potatoes, red pepper, celery, carrots and onions. Mince up the garlic.

Preheat your oven to 350*

Add 2 TBS of olive oil to your soup pan and sauté your mirepoix (carrots, celery and onion) for 5 minutes. Once they become fragrant add in the garlic and cook for 2 additional minutes

While your garlic is cooking, place the sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and place in the oven, cook for 20 minutes.

Add red pepper to the soup pan and cook for an additional 5 minutes then add your lentils and veggie broth and bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and add in the spices, spinach and lemon juice. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring regularly.

Remove sweet potatoes from the oven and add 1 cup of them in a blender along with 2 cups of the stew pulse three times then stir back into the soup.

Now plate it! Add a scoop of sweet potatoes at the bottom of your bowl and then cover with stew, place a few more sweet potatoes on top and serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese

•