TUSCAN LENTIL SOUP
My mother-in-law Connie is always picking up cooking gadgets and finding fun ways to prepare whole foods or play in the kitchen. Last year she got me a pressure cooker for Christmas. Of course it took me a whole year to pull it out on the counter. There is something about instructions that scare me. If I have to read about how to operate the heavy machinery, I need a little more motivation than just another kitchen gadget that I don’t have room for. But this pressure cooker has become a huge help to my very busy, traveling household.
It is a time-saver, and don’t we all need that! I know my mother-in-law told me that 10 times before I finally decided I should check it out myself. It’s one of those things that you just don’t use until you use it. And then you use it all the time! You can cook a whole chicken in 20 minutes, infused with a ton of flavor due to the pressure. Such a great concept! It has become a favorite of mine since planning doesn’t always happen in the kitchen.
Enter Lentil Soup! Lentils are good for so many parts of your life: your body, your blood, your pocketbook, your taste buds, and even the environment. Lentils increase nitrogen and other essential nutrient to the soil during growth. They require less moisture than most crops and prevent soil erosion. By eating lentils you are helping the earth and the environment!
You can’t beat legumes for providing your body with the nutrients and fiber it needs. In general the smaller the seed, the more nutrition a food has by weight or volume. They are high in protein but very alkaline, low in fat and sodium, and are easy to digest.
So with the weather being up and down, a cold day came out of nowhere and a sniffly nose called for soup. In my pantry there is always a healthy storage of dried beans and roots vegetables in the fridge to create a belly warming and soul healing soup.
This is a hearty and thick soup flavored with low country, free-range organic ham from my local farmers’ market. It’s filled with vegetables, chewy farro and is great leftover for lunch. You can’t beat some crisp french bread dipped in olive oil on the side, with a glass of red wine. That’s the way they do it in Italy right?
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Enjoy!
xo, LL