I’m not kidding when I say this soup is a buddy you never knew you needed!

One cup of lentils is only 230 calories and contains less than 1 gram of fat!

In this case, the entire recipe, which serves 6, uses just 1 cup. If you choose, you can sauté your vegetables in water and make this soup with absolutely no additional oil, or you can choose to include some oil if you see the amount as minimal or just want the addition of the olive oil in your diet. Here is what the soup looks like, calorie-wise, in 3 versions:

With no Oil=513 calories= 85.5 per cup

With 1 Tbsp Oil= 632 calories=105 per cup

With 2 Tbsp Oil=751 calories= 125 per cup

ALL of them are fantastic right?! I see no loser in that bunch! Plus there is so much more that is great about this soup.

Lentils are high in cholesterol reducing fiber. This high fiber content is excellent for your digestive system as well, forming a gel like substance which helps ‘clean as it goes’… if you know what I mean.

Lentils also significantly impact your heart health. They are high in Folate and Magnesium, as well as Iron. They are also good at regulating blood sugar and lentils are a slow burning complex carbohydrate which can actually help extend your energy.

If you like savory food in the morning, I could see this going great with a tofu scramble. For lunch, pair it with a big, excellent salad and some whole grain bread. For dinner, I could just eat a big bowl with bread to be honest, but if you like to be fancier about things, you could serve it as the appetizer to a featured protein (seitan, tofu, tempeh, chic pea cutlet…) and some grilled veggies. Perfection!

But one of the best things about this recipe is that it only takes less than 50 minutes to make, with 30 of those minutes just sitting there!! 

Because red lentils are split they only take 20 minutes to cook, and because its a soup, there is really minimal effort involved.

I told you this recipe was everything!

Red Lentil Soup

Yield: Makes 6 -1 cup servings

Ingredients:

(1-2 Tablespoons olive oil)

½ med onion, small diced

1/2 cup carrot, small diced (approx. 1 medium carrot)

½ cup celery, small diced (approx. 1-2 stalks )

2 cloves garlic, pressed

¾ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cumin

¼ teaspoon thyme

¼ teaspoon coriander

1 bay leaf

1 15 oz can diced tomatoes

4 cups vegetable broth

1 cup red lentils

1 teaspoon brown rice vinegar (if you don’t have this just leave it out)

Procedure:

In a large saucepot, add olive oil or water. Saute onion, carrot and celery for 3-5 minutes until vegetables just start to soften.

Add the garlic, salt, cumin, thyme and coriander. Cook 1 minute more, or until fragrant.

Add tomatoes, broth, lentils and bay leaf. Bring back to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and let simmer 20 minutes or until lentils are tender.

Remove from heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Add vinegar, adjust seasonings and serve.