Lentil Minestrone Soup

Total Time: 1 hr 5 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (plus extra oil to finish)
• 2 cups onions, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 3 carrots, diced
• 1 cup celery, diced
• salt
• freshly gorund black pepper
• 1 cup french green lentil, picked through, rinsed
• 2 bay leaves
• 8 parsley sprigs (may use just stems)
• 8 fresh thyme sprigs
• 9 cups water (or vegetable stock)
• soy sauce (mushroom soy sauce recommended)
• 1 bunch greens (mustard, chard, spinach, or brocolli rabe)
• 2 cups cooked small shell pasta (shells, orecchiette, or your favorite)
• parmesan cheese, thinly shaved

Recipe

• 1 heat the oil in a wide soup pot with the onions. saute over high heat, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
• 2 add the tomato paste, parsley, garlic, vegetables, and 2 teaspoons salt and cook 3 minutes more.
• 3 add the lentils, bay leaves, parsley and thyme sprigs, and water and bring to a boil. lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes.
• 4 taste for salt and season with pepper to taste. if it needs more depth, add soy sauce to taste, starting with 1 tbls. the soup may seem a little bland at this point, but the flavors will come together when the soup is finished. remove the bay leaves, parsley and thyme sprigs.
• 5 boil the greens in salted water until they are tender and bright green, then chop them coarsely.
• 6 when ready to serve, add the greens and pasta to the soup and heat through.
• 7 serve with extra virgin olive oil drizzled into each bowl, a generous grind of black pepper, and the shaved parmesan cheese.
• 8 enjoy!