Hearty Homemade Soup for a Cool, Damp Spring Evening

Erg. Managed to avoid the cold/flu thing all winter long, but here it is, visiting at our house.

I needed something easy, yummy, hot, healthy and gluten~free for my supper. So I cooked up some red lentils, with salt and pepper. Cooked 'em that little bit longer than you need to if you want 'em whole. I mean, I wanted soup. Then I peeled and cut up a small potato, covered it with water, added salt, pepper, chopped onion and garlic, and a grated carrot. Not feeling well? Make that lots of garlic and onion. :) I cooked this till the potato was tender, then I mashed.

Sure, you could put everything into a food processor, but I just didn't want to have to wash it. A couple pots, ok... but gimme hot, yummy, filling soup ~ hold the unnecessary dishes. The last thing I need when I'm not feeling well is more chores. So I just used the potato masher, then stirred in the mushy lentils and warmed it all up again, adding some soy milk. Then I thickened the whole thing with a little tapioca starch dissolved first in soy milk, stirring it in till it was cooked and the soup was ... you know... soup. The garnish? Why that's fresh cut garlic greens, chives and oregano from out of the garden. It's May, afterall. :)

Yes! Use those garlic greens in your cooking. Serve with gluten-free crackers. Yum!! This is a soup fit to warm the cockles of your heart on a damp Spring evening and chase those bugs away!