This lentil soup with garlic olive oil is unexpected. Who knew with so little ingredients you could make such a delicious soup?!?
The recipe starts with plain water and adds layers of flavor as you go. First you add the celeriac, salt and lentils. The lentils have little flavor themselves and are more to add protein, fiber, and substance, however by cooking them in water that is infused with salt and the celery flavor from the root you get a pleasant taste in the end.
Next comes the garlic oil. I would not have thought that pouring oil into a soup would be so good, but the garlic infused olive oil really packs a punch and adds so much flavor. This idea came from an awesome chef, Pat Mulvey, with Local Thyme and I’ve adapted a recipe to fit my tastes.
The final touch is the parmesan cheese that imparts such a delicious salty, cheesiness that is irresistible. This is totally optional though if you want to keep your cooking vegan. You could top with nutritional yeast flakes instead to get the cheesy flavor.
Use some crusty bread to make sure you sop up every last bit of the wonderful broth.
If you are not familiar with celeriac, it is a variety of celery that forms a large root ball that can be harvested in the fall and stored like other root vegetables for the winter. It is the perfect vegetable for seasonal eaters since traditional celery (greens that grow above ground) is not available most of the year in the Northern hemisphere. Seasoned cooks know that many recipes start with a mirepoix base, which is onion, celery and carrots sautéed in oil. Celeriac allows for this combination to be used year round.
Even though this lentil soup recipe uses minimal ingredients and at first glance, has very strange instructions, it is one of my favorite soups. Warm your belly on a cold winter day. Enjoy!
Searching for more winter recipes? Check out Green Life Philosophy’s winter recipe archive.
Lentil Soup with Garlic Olive Oil
Ingredients
- 12 ounces green or brown lentils
- 1 tablespoon Salt
- 1/2 cup Celeriac peeled, fine diced or grated
- 1/2 pound Spinach rough chopped
- 1/2 cup Olive Oil
- 4 cloves Garlic minced
- Salt and Pepper
- Grated Parmesan Cheese
- 1 loaf Crusty Bread
Instructions
- Sift through the lentils to remove any stones or debris then rinse well.
- In a large stock pot, add lentils, 3 quarts of water, salt, and celeriac.
- Bring to a simmer and cook for about 20-30 minutes until the lentils are tender.
- Add spinach and simmer 10 more minutes.
- Meanwhile, warm the olive oil in a small skillet, then add the garlic and simmer 30-45 seconds, until fragrant and starting to golden.
- Stir the garlic oil into the soup and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve with parmesan cheese and use bread to sop up the juices.
