Lentil Soup with Sausage, Tomatoes, and Greens
As the fall closes in on us, I, personally, find almost no reason to despair. I love everything about fall, I think it’s one of the most beautiful times of year; surprisingly colorful and vibrant. I like the brisk chill in the air, and I like the excuse to wear pants again (also, have you made chai lately?). It also must be said that I absolutely can’t wait for thanksgiving, but that’s another post. The one thing I truly dread about the changing seasons is that soon our early mornings and late afternoons become much colder and darker. In some ways this is good. It gives us an excuse to wear cozy clothes and watch tv indoors all day - but it also makes waking up for your new crack of dawn pastry chef job harder, and it makes bed feel so much enticingly warmer. However, some of my favorite foods are things that remedy the cold fall/winter evenings; stews over polenta, giant roasts of meat, and soup. Oh soup! I have a few favorites and every year I get truly excited when it is time to make lentil soup with spicy Italian sausage, a tomatoey broth, and a melted garlic butter drizzled on top.
I originally found this soup while browsing through one of my favorite food blogs, Smitten Kitchen, which is written by ever charming Deb Perelman. She closely adapted it from a recipe in Adam Robert’s cookbook The Amateur Gourmet. It’s a wonderful recipe and is really hard to mess up (no judgements if you do of course). As far as soups go, its fairly no fuss and only takes about an hour and half start to finish. I’ve made only a few key changes to the recipe. First of all I use spicy Italian sausage in place of sweet, this gives the whole soup an overall subtle warm and spicy flavor. I also use french green lentils in place of brown because I simply like them better. The most important change I have made, however, is changing the garlic finishing oil, to a garlic finishing butter (mixed with oil) and for that, you are welcome.
Lentil Soup with Sausage, Tomatoes, and Greens
Serves 6-8
Total time: less than 1.5 hours, Active time: 20 minutes.
Ingredients:
1 cup of dry French green lentils, rinsed
1 28 oz can of Tomatoes
1 pound of spicy Italian sausage, casing removed
1 32 oz container of chicken broth
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
2 medium carrots, finely chopped
2 medium celery sticks, finely chopped
2 bay leaves
Salt and Pepper to taste
One bunch Swiss chard, cut or torn into manageable pieces
1/4 cup olive oil, divided
6 Tbsp butter, divided
3 cloves of garlic, smashed
A handful of parsley, chopped coarsely, for serving
Grated Parmigiano Reggiano for serving
Method:
Chop onions, carrots, and celery and place them in a large pot with 1/4 cup of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add a large pinch of salt. Sauté until vegetables are beginning to soften and onions are translucent. Add the sausage and break it apart as it cooks. When the meat is no longer pink add the lentils and give the mixture a good stir.
Add the tomatoes, broth, and about 14 ounces of water (just fill up the empty tomato can halfway), along with the bay leaves and another generous pinch of salt (it’s soup, remember it needs salt). Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to low and continue to simmer uncovered for about 40 minutes or until the lentils are tender and the soup has reduced a bit. At this point, go ahead and stir in three tbsp of butter.
Meanwhile, place a very small pan over low heat and add the crushed garlic along with the remaining three tablespoons of butter and 1/4 cup olive oil. Cook until the butter is melted and the mixture is sizzling and fragrant- about 5 minutes. Set aside until ready to serve.
Right before you are ready to serve, add the chard to the soup. Stir it in and allow it to cook for about five minutes. If you are planning on having a lot of leftovers, which I usually do, Add only half the chard and save the rest to add fresh the next day.
Divide soup among bowls and top with a generous drizzle of garlic butter, parsley, fresh grated parmesan, and salt and pepper.
Enjoy!
