Slow Cooker Lentil Soup

Recipe from Pinch of Yum

Adapted and Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

Serves 8 +

Here’s a very tasty, hearty, and healthful soup to make on blustery days.  Serve with a simple 100% Whole Wheat Batter Bread for a belly-warming dinner.

Main Ingredients:

2 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed

2 cups carrots, scrubbed and sliced

2 cups potatoes, chopped

2 cups celery, chopped

1 cup green lentils

¾ cup yellow split peas (or more green lentils)

1 onion, chopped

5 cloves garlic, minced

8-10 cups vegetable or chicken broth

2 teaspoons herbs de Provence

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Extra ingredients to add at the end: 

1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

¼ cup olive oil (Original recipe calls for ½ cup, but I think that’s just too much.)

1 Tablespoon sherry or red wine vinegar

3 cups chopped kale, stems removed

Place all the “main” ingredients in a large slow cooker.  Cover and cook on high for 5-6 hours or low for 7-8 hours, or until everything is tender.  Remove the lid.  Place about 4 cups of soup in a blender with the olive oil, parsley, and vinegar.  Blend until creamy. Add this back to the soup.  Add the kale.  Stir.  Cover the slow cooker again and cook on high for about 20 minutes or until the kale is bright green and tender and the soup is hot.  Serve. 

Slow Cooker Lentil Split Pea Soup

Recipe from Pinch of Yum

Adapted and Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

Serves 6 (This recipe can be doubled.)

Here’s another good-for-you soup that will fill you up on cold winter nights.  This soup is full of protein and fiber.  I halved the original recipe because there are just two of us and there was plenty for us for dinner and a couple of lunches later. The original recipe called for adding 1 cup of fresh parsley and ½ cup of olive oil before blending. I had no parsley when I made this and I didn’t think the soup needed the olive oil, however, feel free to add them if you like.

Ingredients

1 cup butternut squash (peeled and cubed) or sweet potatoes

1 cup carrots (peeled and sliced)

1 cup potatoes (chopped)

½ cup dry green or brown lentils (rinsed and drained)

½ cup dry yellow split peas (rinsed and drained) (you can substitute with more lentils)

1 small onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 cups vegetable or chicken broth

1 cups water*

1 teaspoon Herbes de Provence

½ teaspoon kosher salt (or more to taste)

2 cups kale (stems removed and leaves chopped or use 2 cups frozen chopped kale)

1-2 Tablespoons dry sherry (not cooking sherry) or fresh lemon juice

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving (if desired)

Place the ingredients except the kale and sherry in a slow cooker.  Stir a bit to mix.  Cover and cook on high for 5 hours or low for 7 hours. 

*Add a bit more water if the soup seems too thick after cooking.

Place 2 cups of the soup in a blender and blend.  Return to the slow cooker.  Add the kale and sherry.  Cover and cook for another 15 minutes or so until everything is cooked through and hot.

Colorful and fresh ingredients make for a healthful dinner!

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Slow Cooker Vegetable Yellow Split Pea Soup

Serves 8
Recipe from SkinnyTaste Fast and Slow by Gina Homolka
Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

This is a very easy soup to make and it’s so tasty too.  It’s low fat and full of protein and fiber.  Make this soup on the weekend and you’ll have a nice dinner for Meatless Monday plus more to pack in your workweek lunchbox. 

16 ounces yellow split peas, rinsed well
1 cup diced peeled butternut squash, fresh or frozen
1 cup sliced carrots
1 cup chopped celery
6 cups reduced-sodium vegetable or chicken broth (or Homemade Vegetable Broth)
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
1 cup chopped yellow onion
6 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
½ Tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1½ teaspoons ground turmeric
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
4 cups coarsely chopped baby spinach

Combine the split peas, butternut squash, carrots, celery, and broth in a slow cooker.  Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 9-10 hours, until the peas are very soft.
In a small skillet, melt the butter over medium heat.  Add the onion, garlic, ginger, cumin, turmeric, and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are soft and fragrant, 3-4 minutes.  Transfer to the slow cooker and add the spinach.  Stir well and cook until the spinach wilts, 15 minutes.  Serve hot.

Notes: 
You can chill the soup in the fridge for up to a week.  It will thicken quite a bit, so you may need to add more liquid when you reheat the soup before serving.
Turmeric stains everything, so be sure to wear an apron and wash your utensils, dishes, sink and countertop right away.

Nutritional Info per 1¼ Cup Serving:  247 calories; 1.5 g fat; 1 g saturated fat; 4 mg cholesterol; 43 g carbohydrates; 9.5 g fiber; 17 g protein; 7 g sugars; 599 mg sodium (Using Homemade Vegetable Broth will reduce sodium if you don’t add salt to the broth.)

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