OK - we'll start with an easy one. I was looking for a recipe for lentil soup. I found several on the internet at various sites and well, I didn't really follow any one recipe. Here is the one I made after reading dozens of them. Bon Appetit!
Italian Lentil Soup
Ingredients:
1 pound bulk Italian Sausage, browned, drained and crumbled
1 Large Onion – diced
enough Baby Carrots – diced to make a cup or so
1 cup diced celery (about 1 rib or so)
About 28-30 oz. Diced Tomatoes, canned
2-3 Cloves Garlic – minced
About 3 cups Lentils – looked over, rinsed and drained (approximately 1 pound)
4 cups Chicken Broth & 2 cups Red wine OR 6 cups Chicken Broth
12 oz diced bell pepper OR 16 oz bell pepper/onion mix (frozen)
1 tsp dried basil ~ 1/2 tsp dried oregano ~ 1 tsp dried parsley ~ 1/2 tsp dried thyme
(these are estimates, you might want to err on the side of conservative if you find some of these overpowering)
salt and pepper to taste
(but don't add salt until lentils are cooked, it can prevent them from becoming soft)
*if using bell pepper mix-use only half of onion amount
Directions:
Add all to pot (5 - 6 quart stockpot, slow cooker or pressure cooker).
Stovetop: Bring to boil over medium heat and lower heat to simmer 1 hour.
Crockpot: 8 - 10 hours on low.
Pressure Cooker: About 30 - 40 minutes on high pressure.
For anyone who might not eat pork - they make turkey italian sausage - just remove the sausage mix from the casing or cook, then dice. You can also substitute chicken sausage or use andouille if you really want to kick it up a bit.
Cooking is all about experimentation - use what you like. Have fun in the kitchen. See you soon.
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