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Description
Between the tang of the citrus, the sautéed greens, and the heartiness of the potatoes is a very satiating soup. This meal goes great with Rustic Sourdough for dipping. There is something infinitely satisfying about a delicious soup and homemade bread.
For the vegetable broth you could opt to use store bought in place of Better Than Bouillon. Or if you don’t have either on hand you can omit and use water but the soup may suffer some flavor point deductions.
The lemon wedges go great as a garnish but they can be omitted if you don’t have any leftover after the cooking process. I didn’t have any leftover, hence they are missing from the cover photo.
The salt / sodium content of Better Than Bouillon or store bought vegetable stock can be on the higher end. Which is why I suggest adding salt to taste.
Ingredients
1 cup dried brown lentils
4 cups vegetable broth (1/2 to 1 Tbsp. Better Than Bouillon, 1 Tbsp. tomato paste, 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper, 1 teaspoon ground coriander, 1/4 t dried lemon peel)
4 cups water, divided
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium onions, diced
2 medium carrots, diced
2 stalks celery
3 cloves garlic, chopped
14 ounce bag chopped collard greens
1 bunch chopped fresh cilantro
1 pound small yellow potatoes, quartered or baby red potatoes, halved
Juice of 1 lemon, wedges for garnish optional
Additional salt and pepper to taste.
Directions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions, carrots, cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly wilted. Add garlic cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in collard greens and cilantro; cook, stirring occasionally, until the greens have wilted. Cook off moisture and slightly brown and caramelize collards.
- While collards are cooking, make the vegetable broth. Heat water in a 4 cup measuring cup. Add seasonings to the warm broth.
- Add 1 cup of water and cook, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, for 30 seconds. Add vegetable broth and enough water to cover, bring to a low boil and then reduce to a simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.
- Bring soup back to a low boil and add lentils. Add water as necessary to keep covered. Slowly reduce back to a simmer so that lentils don’t stick to bottom of pan. After 30 minutes add potatoes, again adding water if necessary and bringing to a low boil and back to a simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Lentils should be thoroughly cooked at this time.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve.