Mindful COMFORT FOODS
SMOKY TOMATO LENTIL SOUP WITH SPINACH AND OLIVES
Olives are an underutilised soup ingredient and I demand they have their day in the broth! They add bright bursts of briny flavour to this sultry tomato lentil soup and really enhance the whole thing with a Mediterranean flair. Spinach wilted in at the end means you’ve got all your nutrition in one pot. This will be a really nice addition to your lentil soup repertoire. Since olives are salty, wait until after you’ve added them to the soup to decide if you need more salt. You can use hot smoked paprika instead of sweet but do remember that it’s hot! So your soup is gonna be spicy. Start with a tablespoon and go from there.
Serves 6
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp dried thyme
2 tbsp sweet smoked paprika (see note above)
190g brown or green lentils
1.2 litres vegetable broth
Freshly ground black pepper
1 can (680g) tomatoes (fire-roasted, if you can find them)
80g loosely packed baby spinach or chopped spinach
115g pitted Kalamata olives, roughly chopped
Preheat a (3.8-litre) soup pot over a medium-high heat. Sauté the onions in
