This soup is hearty without being too filling, comforting while still being healthy, and jam-packed with flavor. Give it a try. And bonus - it's totally doable on a weeknight. One note: don't skip the garlic oil topping. I thought I didn't need it, and then realized what I've been missing all these years. Garlic oil should top everything.
Sausage, Chard, and Lentil Soup
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Serves 4-6, depending on appetites. (Serves only 4 in my house.)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup olive oil, divided
- 2 large links of sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 celery stalks, sliced or diced
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into half-moons or diced
- 4 cloves garlic, sliced (reserve half for later in recipe)
- Kosher salt
- A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 cup brown lentils, sorted and rinsed
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 6 cups water
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 3 to 4 cups shredded or thinly ribboned Swiss chard leaves (kale works, too)
- Grated Pecorino Romano cheese to finish
- 2 large links of sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 celery stalks, sliced or diced
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into half-moons or diced
- 4 cloves garlic, sliced (reserve half for later in recipe)
- Kosher salt
- A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 cup brown lentils, sorted and rinsed
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 6 cups water
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 3 to 4 cups shredded or thinly ribboned Swiss chard leaves (kale works, too)
- Grated Pecorino Romano cheese to finish
Directions
- Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large pot on medium
heat. When hot, add the sausage, breaking it up with a wooden spoon until it
starts to brown, about five minutes.
- Add the onion, celery, carrots, first two
garlic cloves, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of red
pepper flakes. Cook with the sausage until the vegetables soften a bit, another
5 minutes.
- Add the lentils, bay leaves, tomatoes, water (6 cups = two of your empty tomato can), more salt and black pepper to taste.
- Bring to a simmer and allow to
cook until the lentils are tender, about 40 minutes.
- When the lentils are cooked, add the chard and cook until the leaves are
tender, just a few minutes more. Discard the bay leaves.
- To finish, divide soup among bowls, then add the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil
and 2 garlic cloves to a small skillet and heat over medium until the garlic
softens and hisses. Drizzle this over soup bowls, and top with fresh Romano,
passing more at the table.
