Lentil Soup with Lemon and Turmeric

YOU WILL NEED

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups finely chopped onion (1 medium onion)
• 1 1/2 cups chopped carrot (2 large carrots)
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic (3 cloves)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 2 cups (12 ounces) lentils, picked and rinsed
• 8 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 2 heaping cups shredded kale or spinach
• 1 to 2 lemons
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs like parsley or dill, optional
• Fine sea salt, to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat the oil in a large pot (like a Dutch oven) over medium heat. Add the onions, carrot, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt and cook, stirring occasionally until they are softened and starting to smell sweet, about 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the garlic, cumin, coriander, black pepper, and turmeric and cook for 30 seconds.
2. Stir in the lentils and broth. Increase the heat to high and bring just to a boil. Taste then adjust with salt (we add between 1/2 and 1 teaspoon depending on how well seasoned the broth is). Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, partially covered, until the lentils are tender, 35 to 40 minutes.
3. Uncover the pot and stir in the kale (or spinach) and cook, uncovered, another 5 minutes. Take the soup off of the heat, and then stir in the juice of half a lemon and the fresh herbs. Taste the soup, and then season with additional salt and/or lemon juice. (I like quite a bit of lemon.)
4. Serve or if you prefer the soup to be blended, use an immersion blender to blend until your desired consistency. Alternatively, you can use a stand blender to blend all or part of the soup. For even more lemon flavor, serve with a few lemon slices.

This article and recipe adapted from this site