Sunrise Lentil Soup With Lemon And Dill

Sunrise Lentil Soup With Lemon And Dill

From the Rancho Gordo Kitchen an easy recipe to kick off your New Year with good luck and good taste from The Rancho Gordo Kitchen.
Ingredients:

2 tablespoons EVOO

1/2 white or Yellow onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 celery stalk, diced

1 large carrot, diced

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/2 pound uncooked Rancho Gordo lentils, picked over and Rinsed

2 to 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon Kosher salt, or to taste

Freshly ground pepper

Freshly grated lemon zest from 1 lemon,

Chopped fresh dill for serving

Crumbled Feta for serving (optional)

Directions

In a large soup pot, heat the EVOO over medium-low heat,   Add the onion, garlic, celery, carrot and cumin, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 10 to 15 minute.

Add 5 cups of water and the lentil to the pot.  Increase the heat to high and cover the pot, and bring to a boil.  Uncover, reduce the heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the lentils are tender,  

45 minutes.  Some will fall apart during cooking.

Stir in 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and season with lemon juice to taste.  Serve hot, drizzled with lemon zest, dill, and feta, (if using).

Cook's Notes: I used Rancho Gordo's Pulugia Lentils which are a very small but tasty lentil.  With the lid off during the simmer, most of the liquid was lost to evaporation and absorption.  I had a pot of cooked lentils. I added almost two cups of water as I prefer a broth with my soup.  In my next pot I will add the salt when I add the vegetables.  If the vegetables are not cooked with seasoning,  when added after cooking the flavors do not have the depth.  

Also, don't overlook adding the dill.  The flavor it imparts adds so much to this soup!  DJM