Golden Vegetable Soup with Green Lentils

I have been working my way through a cookbook called "Soup" from the Love Food collection.  I have also been working my way through my Winter CSA box and refrigerator.  I had a head of cabbage and carrots in the CSA box and the rest of the ingredients for this recipe are my usual pantry staples.  This recipe is a texture that is different - you puree the soup then add in the lentils.  The result is a thick, hearty soup that is flavorful and delicious.  I use all organic ingredients to make this but conventional
ingredients are OK too.

Special equipment:

Immersion blender (preferred), blender or food processor

Ingredients:

1 TBS Olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 carrot, halved and thinly sliced
1 lb cabbage, cored, quartered, and thinly sliced
1 14 oz can diced tomato with Italian seasonings
1/2 tsp dried thyme
2 bay leaves
6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
7 oz dried green lentils
2 cup water
salt and pepper

Here's how:

Heat the oil in a large soup pot and add the onion, garlic and carrot.

Diced onion

Sliced carrots

Minced garlic

All veggies in the pot

Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring, until the onion is soft.

After 4 minutes

Add the cabbage and cook for 2 minutes.

Sliced cabbage

Cabbage in the pot

 Add the tomatoes, thyme, 1 Bay leaf and the stock.

Tomatoes, bay leaf and stock in

Stirred up

Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes, until the vegetables are soft.

Everything is soft and ready to be pureed

While the vegetables are cooking, in another small saucepan, add the lentil, water and 1 Bay leaf. 

Lentils into the pot

Lentils halfway there, you can see them plumping up

Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer for 25 minutes until the lentils are just tender but not mushy.  If there is extra water in the pan when the lentils are ready, drain it off.

Once the vegetables are soft, puree it in the pot with an immersion blender.  If you do not have one, let the soup cool and puree it in a blender or food processor in batches and add it back to the pot.

Pureeing the soup

Add the lentils to the pureed soup, salt and pepper to taste.

Lentils, salt and pepper in

Cook for 10 more minutes.  Serve.

Lentils cooked and soup done