mushroom & lentil soup recipe

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mushroom & lentil soup

Scott is a serious soup fiend. And if I pair that soup with a loaf of fresh sourdough bread? Well, I'm pretty sure he'd crown me Wife of the Year every time I decide to simmer a savory pot. Doesn't matter if the temperature outside is cool, cold, warm, or hot, soup is always met with groans of anticipatory delight. I'll admit that I too love me a good bowl of soup, but that's due in large part to the ease. A filling, tasty, and nutritious meal that doesn't require massive amounts of kitchen time is definitely a win in my book.

You know what else is a win? MUSHROOMS. Once upon a time, I used to hate them. I most certainly wouldn't eat them, let alone add them to virtually all of my recipes, but now? I absolutely can't get enough. So it was pretty cool to read all about how they're champs when it comes to supporting human health. In Dr. Michael Greger's book How Not to Die, he talks about them quite a bit, but my favorite tidbit was when he referenced a study done on what (if any) links there are between mushroom consumption and reduced risk of breast cancer.

The results were exciting, mostly because I already eat mushrooms and so didn't need to change a thing (that's always nice, right?). The study found that the women who ate at least one half of a mushroom per day had 64% lower odds of developing breast cancer compared to women who ate none. One of my girls doesn't even like mushrooms (except in this mushroom and lentil soup recipe!), but after I shared the findings of that study with her, she makes sure to get some down at nearly every meal ;)

Ingredients

• 2 cups organic green lentils (soaked overnight)

• 8 ounces organic mushrooms (sliced)

• 1 medium bunch of organic kale

• 1 organic onion (diced)

• 7 cups water

• 1 cup organic plant-based milk

• 2 tablespoons organic olive oil (optional)

• 1 tablespoon organic dried thyme

• 1 tablespoon organic coconut aminos

• 1 teaspoon sea salt

  
  

Directions

1. Rinse and drain the lentils before adding them to a soup pot along with the 7 cups of water, the diced onion, sea salt, coconut aminos, and dried thyme. If you didn't soak your lentils overnight, you'll probably need to add an additional 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer.

2. Over medium heat, sauté the mushrooms in a small amount of water until the water the mushrooms release has been cooked off. Add the cooked mushrooms to the blender (reserve some whole for texture, if you prefer) along with the 1 cup of plant-based milk: puree until mostly smooth. Add to the cooking lentils.

3. Rinse, de-stem, and chop the kale. Steam until tender, about 8 minutes, and then add to the soup pot.

4. Simmer for 45-60 minutes until the lentils are soft. Stir in the olive oil (if desired) just before serving.

And that'll do it for today. It's actually a pretty chilly spring day as I sit here typing, and soup is sounding awfully good. Maybe it's time for another Wife of the Year award...

Much love,

Melinda