Mom’s lentil soup or split pea soup

December 20, 2009 at 5:00 pm (Beans, Mom’s recipes, Quick weeknight recipe, soup, unrated)

I think I have about five different lentil soup recipes on this blog, yet I’ve somehow never gotten around to posting my mom’s recipe.  It’s a pretty simple, basic lentil soup recipe, but I think the particular combination of spices is quite nice.  Sometimes I add a little tomato paste or chipotle powder, or some frozen spinach before serving.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups dry lentils or split peas
• 10 cups water
• 1.5 – 2 tsp. salt
• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1.5 cups diced carrots
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 tsp. thyme
• 1/4 tsp. chili powder
• 1/4 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper

Instructions:

1. In a 4-5.5 quart stockpot, bring the lentils and water to a boil.  Once the lentils have come to a boil add the salt, lower the heat, cover, and simmer for one hour.
2. Meanwhile, saute the carrots, celery, and onion in the olive oil until soft.  When the vegetables start to brown, add the dry spices, saute for 30 seconds, and off the heat.
3. When the lentils are done, add the vegetables and simmer for another 10 minutes.  If you are adding any fresh herbs, like thyme, add them right before offing the heat.
4. You can eat the soup immediately, but my mom says that it’s best the next day.

Derek ate two bowls of this soup for lunch, and said it was good.  He gave it a B.  Then we had a friend over for dinner and he suggested adding vinegar to the soup.  With the vinegar and extra salt Derek rated it an A-.

Mom’s lentil soup ~ 11 cups
Serving Size: 1 cup
Amount Per Serving
Calories	153
Total Fat	2.5g
Saturated Fat	0.3g
Trans Fat	0g
Cholesterol	0mg
Sodium	440mg
Carbohydrate	23.1g
Dietary Fiber	5.2g
Sugars	3.7g
Protein	9.8g
Vitamin A 43% Vitamin C 5% Calcium    4% Iron 19%

In comparison, Progresso’s vegetable classics lentil soup, which is very tasty,  has the following ingredients:  water, lentils, tomato paste, modified food starch, spinach, salt, soybean oil, natural flavor.

Looking at the stats, the main difference seems to be that Progresso has twice as much salt, and a few more carbs.

Progresso Soup ~ Vegetable Classics ~ Lentil
Serving Size: 1 cup
Amount Per Serving
Calories	160
Total Fat	2g
Saturated Fat	0.5g
Trans Fat	0g
Cholesterol	0mg
Sodium	810mg
Carbohydrate	30g
Dietary Fiber	5g
Sugars	2g
Protein	9g
Vitamin A 4% Vitamin C 0% Calcium    2% Iron 15%