Sunday Soup {Lentil and Smoked Ham}

Lentils so simple,
and easy on my wallet,
tasty in autumn. 
- lentil haiku

As much as all of my American foodie friends are spending every spare moment right now planning and shopping for this coming Thursday, we can't all wait until then to eat. A hearty lentil and ham soup can be lazily thrown together on a Sunday, and eaten leisurely by the cupful as hunger comes and goes whilst pouring over those cookbooks (or web pages).

Mine was a bit thick, so I've written up the recipe with a bit more broth. But if you like it thick, then just add 1 liter of broth, rather than the 1 1/2 suggested.

I also decided to make the broth and root veg creamy,  à la immersion blender, before adding the lentils and ham. But this isn't necessary if one is looking for a more soup-like consistency.


Now let's get that Thanksgiving menu finished!

And yes, you read correctly, I did just start a post with a lentil haiku. It's that kind of a Sunday.

 Continue to Recipe...

Recipe: Lentil and Smoked Ham Soup

Time 50 mins

Serves 4-5

1 cup (200g) dried lentils

1 1/2 quart/liter vegetable broth

2 bay leaves

1 Tb each olive oil + grapeseed oil

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 scrubbed skins-on carrots, chopped

1/2 head celeriac root (or a few stalks celery)

1 (14oz./400g) can stewed tomatoes

4 oz./110g smoked ham

parsley

3) Get out 3 pots - 2 small and one large. In one of the small pots, cover the lentils with twice as much water, bring to boil, reduce, and simmer to soften. 

2) In another small pot, warm up the broth with a bay leaf. 

3) In the big pot, heat the oils over med-low heat. Chop up the root veggies into 1 cm pieces (peel the celeriac, but no need to do the carrots.) Slide in the onion, carrots, and celeriac. Saute until onions are golden, about 5 mins. Add in the garlic, cook another minute. Pour the contents of the tomato can in the pot, as well as 3/4 of the broth (leave the rest and the bay leaf in the small pot.) Turn heat up, and let bubble away for 15-20 minutes until celeriac is soft.

4) In the meantime, toss the lentils in a colander to strain out the soaking water, and add the lentils into the other small pot with the reserved broth/bay leaf. Chop the ham up into 1 cm pieces and stir them into the lentils. Lid it, and simmer on very low heat. Or just bring to a boil, cover, and turn heat off.

5) When celeriac is soft, stick an immersion blender into the big pot and puree until nearly smooth. Add in the lentils/ham, and simmer covered another 20+ minutes. Serve topped with parsley.

Dobrou Chut' / Enjoy.
-- Jo