Lentil Coconut Curry Soup

This is by far my favorite soup this winter. We have eaten bowl after bowl and still want more. The coconut milk gives it a wonderful creamy finish, and the spices give the flavor wonderful depth. I like to have a couple cans of coconut milk on hand for when the mood strikes to make this soup. All the other ingredients are staples in my kitchen, so this comes together easily.

Lentil Coconut Curry Soup

Ingredients:

2 tsp olive oil
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 stalks of celery, diced

1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp red curry powder
1 tsp yellow curry powder
1 tsp ground cumin
pinch of allspice
1 bay leaf

7-8 cups water
1/2 cup brown lentils

1/2 cup red lentils

4 tsp vegetable boullion
1 tsp salt
1 can coconut milk

Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pan over medium heat. Add the onions and let them cook for about 5 minutes, until they start to turn translucent and soften. Next in goes the garlic which needs to cook down for only a minute before you add the diced celery and carrot. Let that all cook for about 5 minutes to begin to soften the vegetables, then add in all the spices and stir to coat the vegetables. This includes the ginger, coriander, red and yellow curry, cumin, allspice and the bay leaf. Then add the 7-8 cups of water and the brown lentils (depending on how thick you like it, start with 7 and add more at the end if you like). Bring this to a boil and then let it simmer for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes add the red lentils and continue to simmer for another 20 minutes. Then taste the lentils to be sure they have cooked through and then add the vegetable bullion, salt, and coconut milk.

Serve warm.

For 8 servings. Nutritional information from caloriecount.about.com

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 340 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories  197 Calories from Fat  116

% Daily Value*

Total Fat  12.9g 20%

Saturated Fat  10.4g 52%

Trans Fat  0.0g

Cholesterol  0mg 0%

Sodium  672mg 28%

Potassium  328mg 9%

Total Carbohydrates  18.2g 6%

Dietary Fiber  7.7g 31%

Sugars  3.1g

Protein  6.6g

Vitamin A 52% • Vitamin C 7% Calcium 4% • Iron 15%

Nutrition Grade B

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet