Lentil Mulligatawny with a Cilantro Onion Salad.

Before I even go into the background of this soup… my entire family was channeling Seinfeld when I told them what I was making for dinner.  Do you remember the episode with the Soup Nazi?  Ha.  Fond memories… Thankfully there is soup for you!

This recipe is a variation from the very fabulous Vedge Restaurant in Philadelphia.  If you ever find yourself in Philadelphia be sure to make a reservation at this acclaimed restaurant.  The husband and wife duo are vegan powerhouse chefs.  This soup is hands down one of my family’s favorites (even the meat eaters) and I love it because it takes only about 30 minutes to put together.  From there I let it simmer for hours before serving.  Leftovers are incredibly flavorful as the spices develop more intensity.  Our preference is to serve it over jasmine rice for a heartier meal.  It’s a great soup to prepare on Sunday for dinner, with leftovers being perfect for lunches or dinner on the fly during the week.  This recipe is a variation from their recipe.  

Ingredients:

One large handful of freshly washed and dried trimmed cilantro leaves
1/4 of a red onion, finely sliced
2 spring onions, bottoms trimmed and sliced on a diagonal
2 tablespoons of olive oil + extra for the soup
3 tablespoons of fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of a yellow onion, diced
2 tablespoon of curry powder
4 cloves of garlic, minced
8 cups of vegetable stock (I used low sodium)
1 cup of lentils (I used an autumn mixture of orange and yellow)

Directions:

Combine the cilantro leaves, red onion, spring onions, olive oil, lime juice and salt into a lidded container.Give that a good shake to coat.Refrigerate for at least 30 to 60 minutes.

Drizzle a few teaspoons of olive oil in your large Dutch oven or stock pot over medium heat.
Add the yellow onions and stir until golden – about 4 minutes.  Add your garlic, stirring for about 30 seconds.Add the curry powder, stirring to prevent burning.  This step will enhance the flavor of the spice.  Finally, add the stock and lentils giving them a good stir.  Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to simmer for about 20-30 minutes or until the lentils are soft.


Ladle about 4 cups of the soup into a high powered blender.  Blend on the soup setting or on 10 for about 30 seconds.  Return to the stock pot and stir.  Simmer on low until you are ready to serve.
Prior to serving, top with your cilantro red onion salad as a garnish.  I also served with about 1/4 cup of cooked rice in the bottom of each bowl but that’s optional.

Enjoy!

Wrapped up last week with 68.36 miles of training.  Yikes.  That was supposed to be a step down week and turned out to be my highest week ever.  I’m not sure how that happened but running in warmer temps outside made me do it 🙂

My new week begins on Sunday so here we go for week #2 of March!

Sunday:  13.11 outdoor miles with my husband doing the first 11.55 with me
Monday: 11.5 treadmill miles/weights for upper body/abs

That’s it from here.  The weather the next 10 days is heavenly here in PA.  Lots of 60’s and 70’s so I’m looking forward to being outside for lots of runs and dog walks.  Hope you’re enjoying the sunshine too!

— Knead to Cook